Privacy-first age verification aligned with ARCOM's technical guidelines
France's SREN law and ARCOM référentiel set a high bar — and a privacy one. Meet the "double anonymity" principle with on-device age estimation, so the site never learns the user's identity and the verifier never learns the site.
France's 2024 SREN law empowers ARCOM to require certified age verification for adult content and to order blocking of non-compliant sites. ARCOM's référentiel sets out technical requirements, with a defining feature: "double anonymity" — the content site must not learn the user's identity, and the age-verification provider must not learn which site the user is visiting.
This is a privacy-by-design mandate, not just an age gate. Xident's architecture fits naturally: age is established on the user's device, and only a minimal age signal is shared — supporting the separation of identity and access that the référentiel is built around.
The regulator
What the law requires in France
SREN law & ARCOM's powers
The SREN law (loi visant à sécuriser et réguler l'espace numérique, 2024) lets ARCOM mandate age verification for adult content and order ISPs and search engines to block non-compliant services.
The référentiel & double anonymity
ARCOM's technical référentiel requires robust age verification while protecting privacy through "double anonymity": the site cannot identify the user via the check, and the verification provider cannot see which site is being accessed.
Why self-declaration fails
A checkbox or self-declared birthdate does not meet the référentiel. Operators need a verification method that is both effective and privacy-preserving — the two goals ARCOM deliberately couples.
How on-device works
Verification that leaves nothing to store, breach, or hand to a regulator
Most users are cleared by a model that runs in their own browser. The image never reaches our servers — only a pass/fail age signal does.
Age is estimated on the device
An on-device model runs in the user's browser and estimates whether they clear the required age threshold. No upload, no server round-trip for the image.
Nothing leaves the device
No selfie, no biometric template, no raw frame is transmitted. Only a pass/fail age signal reaches your backend — so there is no biometric honeypot to breach or disclose.
Document fallback only for borderline cases
Ambiguous ages step up to a document check, which is processed for extraction and deleted immediately. Verified users get a reusable age credential, so returning visits resolve with a one-tap Check.
The face never becomes data you hold. That is the difference between meeting an age-assurance duty and becoming the next breach headline.
How Xident maps to it
A privacy-first path to France compliance
On-device estimation supports double anonymity
Because age is estimated in the browser and only a pass/fail signal is shared, the content site never receives identity data — directly supporting the separation of identity and access at the heart of the référentiel.
No ID upload for most users
The fast path clears the majority of users without any document, reducing both friction and the identity data in circulation. A document fallback is reserved for borderline cases and deleted after extraction.
Reusable credential, re-usable proof
A returning user can present a reusable age credential, proving they are an adult without re-disclosing identity — consistent with a privacy-first, anonymity-preserving flow.
Frequently asked questions
Does Xident meet the ARCOM référentiel?
What is "double anonymity"?
Do French users have to upload an ID?
Related solutions
Compliance without a biometric honeypot
Meet France's age-assurance requirements with on-device estimation, document fallback, and reusable credentials.
Book a 20-minute demoThis page is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Age-verification law changes frequently and varies by jurisdiction. Operators are responsible for confirming their current obligations with qualified legal counsel.