United Kingdom

Carded Before Sexting?

The U.K. says tech companies have three months to stop minors from sending or receiving nude images—and universal identity checks for phone users may be the only way forward.

Elizabeth Nolan Brown | 6.17.2026 10:45 AM

Share on FacebookShare on XShare on RedditShare by emailPrint friendly versionCopy page URL Add Reason to Google

Media Contact & Reprint Requests

(Illustration: Nandovidal81/Dreamstime/Midjourney (edited))

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer wants tech companies to stop teenagers from sending and receiving nude images. But this ostensibly well-intentioned proposal would be a disaster for adult privacy.

"I'm calling on tech companies operating in this country to introduce device controls that prevent children from sending and receiving sexually explicit images," Starmer said on June 8, during London Tech Week. "If they choose not to, then we will act, and we will change the law."

You are reading Sex & Tech, from Elizabeth Nolan Brown. Get more of Elizabeth's sex, tech, bodily autonomy, law, and online culture coverage.

Comments

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Email(Required)

SUBSCRIBE

Starmer makes it sound as if what he's proposing is easy and tech companies are simply being negligent by not doing it. But there is no simple—or non-invasive—way for phone and device companies to comply. And authorities gave tech companies just three months to implement these new controls.

Bringing on the Selfie Snoops

One track tech companies could take is heavier-handed monitoring of all text messages. Encrypted messaging would obviously be off-limits under this scheme.

An algorithm could determine whether images involved nudity or semi-nudity, and attempt to estimate the age of the person depicted. But humans would have to get involved at some point, too—to assess images, to review decisions, and so on. That means anyone—adult or minor—could have their most personal images subject to prying eyeballs.

And with fines and legal action possible, you can bet that phone companies are going to err on the side of caution. That means plenty of adults would be blocked from sending sexy images, too. There's no clear way to tell from many photos—especially those that don't show faces—if someone is 17 or 23 or 35.

Of course, age-assessing images would only half accomplish what Starmer says must happen. It wouldn't be able to stop minors from receiving sexually oriented images, just from sending them.

Bringing on Universal ID Checks

To really do what Starmer wants, tech companies would have to identity check everyone at the device level. That means every mobile phone or tablet user would have to submit a government ID or biometric data to prove their age.

"Adults would ⁠still ⁠be able to take, ⁠share ​or view nude content........

© Reason.com