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The research - by GB Group, the UK’s leading identity management company
– reveals:
– Nearly half (48%) of teenage boys under 18 have tried to buy
adult DVDs or violent video games online in the past year...and over
three quarters of these were successful
– One in 20 (5%) 14 year olds have successfully purchased alcohol
online
– A similar number of 15 year olds have been able to buy dangerous
objects online such as knives
– A quarter (25%) of teenage boys and over a third (38%) of
teenage girls under 18 have managed to buy items online using someone
else’s credit card

Recent advances in online technology mean websites can now immediately
verify anyone who tries to buy or access material which could be deemed
inappropriate, by cross-referencing existing ID and age data - allowing
online firms to keep sites user-friendly while putting security measures
in place to protect young people.

Yet while the UK online gambling industry has embraced latest age and ID
verification processes, to protect young and vulnerable consumers, the
survey shows that online retailers are still failing to verify customer
ages: two thirds (66%) of 13-17 year olds have been asked for ID in
shops when trying to buy inappropriate material over the past year, yet
just 18% of young people have been asked to prove their ID when trying
to buy similar items online over the same period.

Even popular social network sites such as YouTube and Facebook currently
offer ’adult’ content without any stringent age verification.

The findings come in the week the Online Purchasing of Goods and
Services (Age Verification) Bill receives a further reading in
Parliament; introduced by Margaret Moran, Labour MP for Luton South, it
is due to receive its second reading on Friday (May 16).

Moran’s proposals aim to ensure that anyone selling age-restricted goods
and services over the internet has to take steps to verify if customers
are old enough. It is the first time a politician in Europe has called
for online age and identity verification to be put on the statute books.

GB Group, who conducted the research, is the UK’s leading age and ID
verification company, and has helped the UK online gaming industry clean
up its act in recent years thanks to is ability to verify age and
identity online.

Richard Law, GB Group’s CEO, said: "The research shows there is an
urgent need for online retailers to take a more responsible approach to
protecting youngsters from buying inappropriate goods online.

"Under-age binge drinking is a huge problem, for example, yet many
online retailers still don’t have any form of robust age verification
system in place. And it’s even possible for young people to successfully
buy knives online without having to undergo any age or ID check.

"Online businesses need to recognise the recent developments that have
been made in verifying age and identity - it is now possible to take a
risk-based approach to verifying customer identity, starting with those
customer groups and products that may pose the highest risks."

This survey shows just how easy it is for under-18s to purchase
unsuitable items online: nearly one in five (17%) got round any age
restrictions by using a pre-paid credit card, while 84% only had to tick
a box to say they were 18.

Richard Law, of GB Group, added: "The UK online gaming industry has
demonstrated how it can protect vulnerable and young people from
accessing inappropriate online material - online gaming firms are
obliged under official rules to undertake age checks.

"The absence of similar obligatory rules in relation top the sale of
alcohol, DVDs and knives online means on the face of it that a value
judgement is being made that underage gambling is worse for youngsters
than underage drinking, watching adult DVDs or possessing knives, and I
believe this point is well made in Margaret Moran’s Bill."

A nationwide survey among 1,000 male and female teenagers aged 13-17
found that young people are consistently trying to buy inappropriate
material online thanks to poor levels of age verification - and in
thousands of cases across the country are successful in their attempts.