UK Discord users were part of a Peter Thiel-linked data collection experiment (rockpapershotgun.com)

Article summary

Discord has partnered with Persona, an identity detection firm backed by Peter Thiel's Founders Fund, to implement a new age verification system. The system will store user information on Persona's servers for up to 7 days as part of an 'experiment' in the UK. Discord had previously stated that identity documents submitted to their vendors would be deleted immediately after age confirmation. The collaboration has raised concerns about data privacy and the involvement of Peter Thiel, who is also the chairman of Palantir, a company known for its work in government and military surveillance.

Main themes

• Data privacy
• Age verification
• Surveillance
• Peter Thiel
• Palantir
• Discord

What commenters say

• The involvement of Peter Thiel and Palantir in Discord's age verification system is a cause for concern due to their history of working with government and military surveillance.
• Discord's partnership with Persona is a threat to user data privacy, as the company has a history of selling user data to third parties.
• The fact that Persona is storing user information for up to 7 days is a violation of Discord's previous promise to delete identity documents immediately after age confirmation.
• Some users argue that the risk of data collection and surveillance is inherent in using free services like Discord, and that users should be aware of the potential risks.
• Others believe that the concern over Peter Thiel's involvement is overstated, and that the focus should be on the actual data collection practices of Discord and Persona rather than the individuals involved.
• There is a lack of transparency around how Discord and Persona will use the collected data, and what measures will be taken to protect user privacy.
• Some commenters are skeptical of Discord's claims that user data will be deleted after 7 days, and believe that the company may be sharing or selling the data to third parties.
• The discussion around Discord's age verification system highlights the need for greater transparency and accountability in data collection and surveillance practices.