Social Central – Age Verification at Registration

Effective Date: 2026-07-17 · Last Updated: 2026-08-14 · How we verify age during registration

Social Central is an 18+ service. Minors are not permitted. This page describes age-verification controls during registration and required profile setup. Policy basis: Acceptable Use Policy §1 and Terms of Service. PDF: Download PDF. Screenshot of the registration prompt: view prompt / PNG.

1. Legal / Policy Requirement

• Users must be at least 18 years old to use this Service. Users under 18 are not permitted to create an account or access the Service.
• Minors are not permitted. Accounts for underage users are terminated.
• Photos of children and any sexual content involving minors are prohibited (see AUP / CSAM protocols).

2. iOS Registration — Date Of Birth Hard Block

1. Before the signup form, the iOS app presents an Age Verification Required screen.
2. The user must enter a full Date Of Birth. Age is calculated from that date.
3. If the calculated age is under 18, Continue is blocked with: “You must be 18 or older to use Social Central.” No account is created.
4. I am under 18 returns the user to Login without creating an account.
5. The signup API rejects account creation unless dob is a valid date proving age 18+.

2b. Web Registration — Date Of Birth Hard Block

1. On login.php, choosing Sign Up shows the age gate with a required Date Of Birth field before the signup form unlocks.
2. Under 18 is blocked in the browser and again on the server. No Player row is created.
3. The signup API (/User/Session/signup.php) requires dob (YYYY-MM-DD) and refuses under-18 dates.
4. Preview of the prompt: view prompt.

3. Birthdate / Age Collection (Profile)

• During required profile completion, users provide birthday information; age is calculated from date of birth.
• If calculated age is under 18, the iOS profile save is blocked with: “You must be 18 years or older to use this app.”
• A primary profile photo and other required identity fields are also required before full use (see Profile Verification).

4. Web Registration / Required Profile

• New accounts require email activation before use.
• After activation, users must complete required profile fields including age (and name, sex/gender, country, primary photo) before normal use.
• Terms / AUP acceptance applies; age-related agreement records are supported via the same agreements API (age_verification, terms_of_use).

5. Independent Age Verification (Persona)

After the date-of-birth hard block described above, Social Central uses Persona (withpersona.com) for independent age verification. Persona performs the verification check; Social Central does not perform government-ID KYC itself. Verification runs in a hosted browser flow (not in-app document upload to Social Central).

• Who must verify: all new accounts must complete Persona verification before the account is usable, and anyone purchasing Premium or SC Bucks packs must complete Persona verification before the purchase proceeds (if not already verified).
• Order of controls: attestation → date-of-birth hard block → hosted Persona Inquiry → account usable or purchase allowed only after Persona reports passed.
• Under 18 / failed verification: Persona inquiries that are declined or failed (including users under 18) are blocked from completing signup or from completing a paid purchase; users may retry with a new Inquiry where permitted.
• Existing free users: users who already have a free account and do not purchase Premium or SC Bucks are not required to complete Persona unless they later purchase.
• Data handling: Social Central stores inquiry metadata and verification status only; government-ID images and biometric selfie data collected during the Persona flow are handled by Persona per their Privacy Policy.

6. Enforcement if Underage Use Is Detected

• Accounts found to belong to underage users are terminated.
• Users may report suspected underage accounts via Report Abuse / Contact.
• Staff review support queues; serious cases can lead to immediate ban and, where appropriate, law-enforcement / NCMEC referral for child-safety issues.

7. Scope Note

Age verification combines affirmative attestation, birthdate-derived age checks (iOS and required profile fields), independent verification through Persona for new signups and purchasers, and policy + enforcement. Attestation and DOB remain required in addition to Persona (belt-and-suspenders controls).

AUP · Profile Verification · Safety · Contact