Anthropic has updated its privacy policy, introducing the possibility to require Claude users to verify their age and identity by uploading government-issued documents such as a passport or driver's license. The change, published in June and effective July 8, applies to a subset of users whose accounts have been flagged for potentially fraudulent activity, offering an appeals process instead of an outright ban. The decision comes amid tensions between Anthropic and the Trump administration, after White House officials effectively forced the company to pull its latest cybersecurity models over alleged jailbreak vulnerabilities.
Verification only for flagged accounts
According to a new section in the privacy policy, Anthropic says it will ask users to prove their age or identity "in certain circumstances," without providing specific examples. The company has long required users to be over 18 to use Claude, but earlier this year introduced age-verification checks to comply with various states and countries. Identity checks were announced but not reflected in the policy until now. When triggered, the process requires uploading a photo scan of a government-issued passport or driver's license, along with a selfie or video and a digitized version of the face as a geometric model. Some states, like Illinois, consider this biometric data legally protected. Anthropic also retains a record of the verification result, such as whether the user reached a certain age.
Sponsored Protocol
Persona chosen as verification partner
Anthropic uses San Francisco-based Persona as its identity verification provider. Users may see a verification prompt when accessing certain capabilities or as part of platform integrity checks. Persona is backed by Founders Fund, an investment firm founded by Peter Thiel, who also invests in Anthropic. This choice has drawn criticism, as Discord previously chose Persona for age verification but reversed course after user backlash. Similarly, the 'usbliter8' vulnerability in Apple A12 and A13 chips, which enabled jailbreak of older iPhones with physical access, highlights the importance of hardware security. Moreover, the recent data breach at Tata Electronics, a supplier to Apple and Tesla, exposing 630GB of files, underscores risks in the digital supply chain.
Sponsored Protocol
Tensions with the Trump administration
Anthropic's move to more closely track who uses its AI tools may be a way to comply with various legal challenges, regulatory changes, and pressures from the Trump administration. The company remains at an impasse with the White House after officials forced Anthropic to pull its cybersecurity models over alleged jailbreak vulnerabilities. Other reports indicate personality clashes as the main cause of the rift. Months earlier, the Department of Defense designated Anthropic a "supply chain risk," apparently in retaliation for not allowing the government to use its technology for mass surveillance or fully autonomous weapons. For more on Anthropic, see the Wikipedia page.
Sponsored Protocol
What changes for developers and users
Anthropic stated that the change applies only to a small subset of users whose accounts are flagged but not banned. Spokesperson Michael Aciman confirmed the policy was updated on June 17 as part of the appeals process and is unrelated to the Fable or Mythos rollout. The company decides how long Persona retains identity documents but has not specified a deletion timeline. In contrast, Roblox, another Persona customer, deletes images immediately after processing. Persona can still face U.S. government demands for stored information. Anthropic's decision raises privacy and biometric data security concerns, especially under regulations like Europe's GDPR, which impose strict limits on data retention and use.
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2026/06/22/anthropic-says-claude-may-want-to-see-your-id
