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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Discord faces criticism for its heavy-handed approach to age verification.
- The company has attempted to clarify its demands for photos, videos, or copies of ID.
- If you aren’t happy with these changes, there are alternative platforms to consider.
Discord, read the room.
Just months after a third-party provider of age-verification services to the popular messaging platform was breached, exposing around 70,000 government-issued ID photos, Discord has decided to push forward with its age verification crusade.
Yes, governments are imposing online censorship and data collection under the “protect the children” banner by demanding that organizations verify their users’ ages, but memories aren’t as short as you may believe. With thousands of sensitive ID scans leaked only last October, it’s hardly surprising that user backlash has been swift.
Also: Discord’s new age ID rules are driving users away – here’s where they’re headed
Discord’s demands
On Tuesday, Discord announced a “teen by design” overhaul of its accounts. Set to roll out to all users by March, accounts will be locked to a “teen-appropriate experience” unless age verification takes place.
In a blog post, the messaging platform said these “age-appropriate protections” would result in “updated communication settings, restricted access to age-gated spaces, and content filtering” for anyone who remains unverified.
The company claims that most users won’t ever see a demand for age verification thanks to the platform’s behind-the-scenes predictive systems that can determine whether an account is owned by an adult. However, if you are selected for verification and want to access content outside of the teen bubble, you’ll need to provide a facial scan, ID, or other still-to-be-determined record to a third party.
Discord is now working with a different age verification provider, but its claims of security and “quickly deleted” scans are hardly reassuring.
Considering Discord caters to around 200 million users and direct alternatives are few and far between, there may be only a small subset of users who refuse in deference to their own privacy and security. If you’re looking for a Discord alternative, keep in mind that — at the moment — there really isn’t one that ticks all of the boxes — messaging, voice chat, rooms, going live, file sharing, and the overall multichannel sense of community.
Still, below are my favorite alternatives to consider, a list I will update as projects continue to develop.
Signal
If you’re privacy-conscious, take a look at Signal’s chat functions. Signal Messenger is end-to-end encrypted, and you can launch group chats, share files, and perform video calls. It’s free, too.
However, you won’t be able to screen share unless you are using Signal on a desktop PC. Still, considering that this is one of Discord’s most popular features and something comparable that people are currently looking for in a Discord alternative, you might not mind the inconvenience of being limited to a PC to access this feature.
Matrix (Element)
Matrix is a decentralized open server network that is free to use — and it couldn’t be easier to set up. Download Matrix and choose Element for web use or desktop, which is compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux. Alternatively, select Element X for iOS or Android.
You will then need to sign up for an account (no age verification required). Once you’ve logged in, you can launch a group or surf public rooms, depending on the topic you’re interested in. It’s best for creating private rooms, but its functionality is limited.
Stoat (Revolt)
If you want something relatively similar, Stoat — previously Revolt — is worth bookmarking. There are community channels, text chat, permissions, tagging and searches, bots, and more.
It has a lot of Discord-esque features in the pipeline, but this project is in development and was recently hit with a cease-and-desist, forcing the name change.
However, it seems many of us have been looking for a Discord alternative, and this demand may have overloaded their servers, as the website is experiencing performance issues that I hope will be resolved quickly.
Root
Root is in very early stages, but it’s one of the closest things to Discord I’ve found so far. It has a very similar community feel — and an influx of new users. This project is certainly one to watch. You can join communities by accepting invites, create your own, share files, and more.
Yes, I know this is nothing like Discord’s community setup and lacks most of the features that have made it so popular, but WhatsApp is a free messaging and video calling service that you could use in a pinch if you wanted to create a group voice call outside of console gaming setups, and for free.
Are there any others?
You can check out TeamSpeak, but this is for esports and high-grade communication rather than the casual community feel Discord is known for. There’s also Slack, but this is geared more toward productivity and professional use.
Final thoughts
While there’s no carbon copy of Discord, that doesn’t mean there isn’t a market opportunity here. Something better may rise from the ashes of this situation. If a company — even by association — is considered to be unworthy to handle sensitive user information and then restricts its services to those who refuse to comply, you may find that its popularity will wane in favor of a less restrictive platform, perhaps built by developers keen to capitalize on user demand for an alternative.
