Most tattooed man in the UK says the government's new age-check system can't recognize his face
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UK's most inked man (Image via Instagram/@kingofinklandkingbodyart)The UK’s most tattooed man is being denied access to webpages by the country’s new age verification checks, which estimate age based on selfies. Matthew Whelan, who changed his name to King Of Ink Land King Body Art The Extreme Ink-ite, is revealing that the age verification mechanism interprets his tattooed face as a ‘mask.’
Coming into effect on July 25, the UK’s new age verification policy, also known as the Online Safety Act, stipulates that people above the age of 18 need to verify their age through photo ID or through selfies to access sites with mature content on the internet, as per BBC.
While speaking to Need To Know, King of Ink Land opened up about being denied access to content on the internet because of the policy. The 45-year-old said that his face is interpreted as a mask by the system, and added,
“It keeps asking me to remove my face. I can’t just do a Nicholas Cage or John Travolta like in Face Off.”
As per Need To Know, King Of Ink Land criticized the policy and the age verification system, adding,
“No matter how different or alternative you look, there is no place for discrimination – especially from technology.”
While the Birmingham resident, who has spent 1,600 hours getting tattoos all over his body, is habituated to the hazards of having an unconventional name and look, he argued that he should not be denied access to the internet based on how he looks. According to Need To Know, he stated,
“I’m used to having my ID declined sometimes because of my legal name and tattoos. But constantly asking me to remove my ‘mask’ is frustrating. This is who I am; Why is it trying to change me?”
The King of Ink Land questions the application of the UK’s age verification policy
While speaking to Metro, Matthew Whelan, or King of Ink Land as he is more famously known, pointed towards critical gaps in the law’s application. He said,
“It’s saying “remove your mask” because the technology is made so you can’t hold up a picture to the camera or wear a mask. Would this also be the case for someone who is disfigured? They should have thought of this from day one…Without a name you haven’t got an identity, and it’s the same with a face.”
Metro notes that for many, a common solution to problems brought about as a result of the UK’s new age-based policy is to download VPNs, or Virtual Private Networks, which allow netizens to hide their location.
King of Ink Land also resorted to the same solution. He told Metro,
“A lot of people use VPNs and I use a VPN myself now…It’s like a cloak of invisibility really.”
However, BBC notes that using a VPN might not be a complete solution for browsing the internet by surpassing age verification requirements. The news outlet said that, as per Ofcom, platforms can not host or allow the use of a VPN. Moreover, the government has made it illegal for platforms to allow the use of VPN, noted the BBC.
Additionally, the implementation of the Online Safety Act has sparked privacy concerns as users need to verify their age through selfies and photo IDs. As per another report by the BBC, while user data will remain generally protected, privacy concerns will remain if data is not managed properly.
TOPICS: UK, King Of Ink Land, Matthew Whelan, age-check system