A hot potato: Redditors in the UK who wish to view “certain mature content” on the platform now have to verify that they are 18 or older first. The company has introduced age verification for users in the country, which requires them to upload a selfie or a photo of their government ID.

Reddit says it was built on the principle that users shouldn’t need to share personal information to participate in meaningful discussions. However, it does note that while the platform doesn’t want to know who its users are, there are situations where it would be helpful to know a little more about them, such as whether a user is a real person or a bot, or if they are an adult or a child.

The announcement relates to the UK Online Safety Act, which require sites that show adult material to implement age verification measures beyond just clicking an “I am over 18” box. Its implementation has forced Reddit to introduce new requirements as of July 14.

The post states that Reddit has “tried” to use an age-verification method that protects the privacy of UK Redditors. It has partnered with a third-party provider, Persona, which performs the verification through either an uploaded selfie or photo of a government ID.

Reddit will not have access to the uploaded photo and it will only store users’ verification status along with their birthdate so they won’t have to re-enter it each time they try to access restricted content.

Persona, meanwhile, promises that it will not retain photos of users for longer than 7 days and not have access to users’ Reddit data, such as the subreddits they visit.

“Your birthdate is never visible to other users or advertisers, and is used to support safety features and age-appropriate experiences on Reddit,” the announcement reads.

Reddit’s list of content restricted for non-adult UK users includes:

• bullying
• anything sexually explicit
• content that encourages, promotes, or provides instruction for suicide, self-injury, or eating disorders
• content that is abusive or incites hatred against people based on race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, or gender reassignment
• content that promotes violence against a person or depicts real or realistically serious violence against a person, an animal, or a fictional creature

Also on the over-18s-only list is content that promotes or romanticizes depression, hopelessness and despair; shames or otherwise stigmatizes body types or physical features; and encourages a person to ingest, inject, inhale, or self-administer a physically harmful substance, or a substance in a physically harmful quantity. Challenges and stunts that could lead to serious harm are also now adult-only.

The deadline for online companies to comply with the UK’s new rules is July 25. Many adult websites have started warning UK visitors to prepare for age verification checks to arrive.

UK regulatory agency Ofcom admitted that some under-18s will find ways to circumvent the restrictions, but added that they should prevent many kids from “stumbling across porn,” and that “this is very much a first step.”

Companies that fail to meet the rules face fines of up to £18 million ($24.1 million) or 10% of their worldwide revenue, “whichever is greater.”

David Greene, civil liberties director at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, said the UK’s Online Safety Act was a “real tragedy.”

“UK users can no longer use the internet without having to provide their papers, as it were,” he said via the BBC. Greene added that he was disappointed websites like Reddit were not legally challenging the law.

Reddit said it expects that as laws change, it may implement age verification checks in other countries.