Mozilla to UK regulators: VPNs are essential privacy and security tools

4 hours ago

The UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology is consulting on measures, including age-gating VPNs, to protect young people online, amid concerns about circumvention of age assurance systems under the Online Safety Act.
Mozilla supports protecting young people online but argues mandatory age assurance and VPN restrictions are ineffective and undermine fundamental rights like privacy and security, which are human rights.
VPNs are critical tools for privacy and security for all ages, hiding IP addresses to reduce tracking and profiling, and are especially important for vulnerable groups like activists and journalists.
Young people are vulnerable to online tracking and targeted advertising; restricting their access to privacy tools like VPNs conflicts with equipping them to navigate the internet safely and develop digital agency.
Mozilla recommends regulators address root causes of online harm by holding platforms accountable, promoting responsible parental controls, and investing in digital skills and a societal approach to digital wellbeing.

Hasty Briefsbeta