The Federal Trade Commission will hold a workshop on January 28, 2026, to examine age verification and estimation technologies that help companies determine the age of website visitors and users of online services. The event will bring together researchers, academics, industry representatives, consumer advocates and government regulators to address what has become an increasingly critical compliance issue across digital platforms.
Age verification has emerged as a cornerstone requirement for adult websites and platforms hosting age-restricted content, with regulatory frameworks expanding rapidly across multiple jurisdictions. The technology landscape continues to evolve, particularly with artificial intelligence creating new possibilities for automated age estimation through facial recognition and behavioral analysis, while also raising fresh questions about privacy and accuracy.
The Age Verification Workshop will cover several key topics, including the importance of age verification, available verification and estimation tools, and regulatory requirements. Participants will also discuss strategies for broader deployment of age verification technologies and their relationship to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
For adult industry professionals, the workshop represents an opportunity to understand how federal regulators view the current technology landscape and compliance expectations. The discussion will likely address both traditional verification methods requiring government-issued identification and newer AI-powered estimation systems that analyze visual or behavioral data to determine user age ranges.
The workshop will be held both online and in person at the FTC’s Constitution Center at 400 7th St SW, Washington, DC 20024. The event is free and open to the public, with no registration required to attend.
Additional details about the event, including webcast information, will be posted to the FTC’s event page.
