Spotify to delete accounts that fail age-verification checks
Following the UK’s introduction of the Online Safety Act, Spotify has confirmed it will delete accounts that fail its new age-verification checks.
The new law was officially passed in October 2023 under the previous government, but became official on July 25th, 2025.
The Online Safety Act was introduced to combat children accessing harmful online materials; therefore, adults over 18 are now obliged to pass facial recognition checks or show official documentation to visit websites intended for adults.
Any online platform that fails to sign up for the new law could face a fine of up to £18 million or ten per cent of its annual revenue.
Spotify is one of the many online platforms to have signed up for the Online Safety Act, and now, a new page on the streaming giant website reads: “You cannot use Spotify if you don’t meet the minimum age requirements for the market you’re in. If you cannot confirm you’re old enough to use Spotify, your account will be deactivated and eventually deleted.”
The streaming service has partnered with Yoti and integrated its face-scanning technology into the Spotify app to estimate users’ ages. Spotify claims: “After the age check is complete, Yoti will delete all users’ data. Spotify will use the results of the process to improve our ability to provide an age-appropriate experience to all of our users.”
If a Spotify account has been deactivated due to an inaccurate age estimation, users will be able to reactivate their account within 90 days through an ID verification process. However, the account will permanently be deleted if Spotify cannot verify the age.
A number of prominent politicians, including Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, have criticised the Online Safety Act. In response, Prime Minister Keir Starmer defended the bill, stating, “I personally feel very strongly that we should protect our young teenagers, and that’s what it usually is, from things like suicide sites. I don’t see that as a free speech issue, I see that as child protection.”
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