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In the past few years, governments across the world have rolled out different digital identification options, and now there are efforts encouraging online companies to implement identity and age verification requirements with digital ID in mind. This blog is the third in a short series that explains digital ID and the pending use case of age verification. Here, we cover alternative frameworks on age controls, updates on parental controls, and the importance of digital privacy in an increasingly hostile climate politically. You can read the first two posts here, and here. Observable harms of age verification legislation in the UK, US, and elsewhere: As we witness the effects of the Online Safety Act in the UK and over 25 state age verification laws in the U.S, it has become even more apparent that mandatory age verification is more of a detriment than a benefit to the public. Here’s what we’re seeing: Scope creep is already occurring with various website shutdowns and excessive requests from various websites. Data is being handed to age assurance providers with questionable privacy policies. Older teenagers (voting age is set to be 16 in the UK) are having their ability to communicate online blocked on various platforms. Adults aren’t able to use the internet to access content that is lawfully available to them if they do not agree to third-party usage of their information. It’s obvious: age verification will not keep children safe online. Rather, it is a large proverbial hammer that nails everyone—adults and young people alike—into restrictive parameters of what the government deems appropriate content. That reality is more obvious and tangible now that we’ve seen age-restrictive regulations roll out in various states and countries. But that doesn’t have to be the future if we turn away from age-gating the web. Keeping kids safe online (or anywhere IRL, let’s not forget) is a complex social issue that cannot be resolved with technology alone. The legislators responsible for online age verification bills must confront that they are currently addressing complex social issues with a problematic array of technology. Most of policymakers’ concerns about minors' engagement with the internet can be sorted into one of three categories: Content risks: The negative implications from exposure to online content that might be age-inappropriate, such as violent or sexually explicit content, or content that incites dangerous behavior like self-harm.  Conduct risks: Behavior by children or teenagers that might be harmful to themselves or others, like cyberbullying, sharing intimate or personal information or problematic overuse of a service. Contact risks: The potential harms stemming from contact with people that might pose a risk to minors, including grooming or being forced to exchange sexually explicit material. Parental controls—which already exist!—can help. These three categories of possible risks will not be eliminated by mandatory age verification—or any form of techno-solutionism, for that matter. Mandatory age checks will instead block access to vital online communities and resources for those people—including young people—who need them the most. It’s an ineffective and disproportionate tool to holistically address young people’s online safety.  However, these can be partially addressed with better-utilized and better-designed parental controls and family accounts. Existing parental controls are woefully underutilized, according to one survey that collected answers from 1,000 parents. Adoption of parental controls varied widely, from 51% on tablets to 35% on video game consoles. Making parental controls more flexible and accessible, so parents better understand the tools and how to use them, could increase adoption and address content risk more effectively than a broad government censorship mandate.   Recently, Android made its parental controls easier to set up. It rolled out features that directly address content risk by assisting parents who wish to block specific apps and filter out mature content from Google Chrome and Google Search. Apple also updated its parental controls settings this past summer by instituting new ways for parents to manage child accounts and giving app developers access to a Declared Age Range API. Where parents can declare age range and apps can respond to declared ranges established in child accounts, without giving over a birthdate. With this, parents are given some flexibility like age-range information beyond just 13+. A diverse range of tools and flexible settings provide the best options for families and empower parents and guardians to decide and tailor what online safety means for their own children—at any age, maturity level, or type of individual risk. Privacy laws can also help minors online. Parental controls are useful in the hands of responsible guardians. But what about children who are neglected or abused by those in charge of them? Age verification laws cannot solve this problem; these laws simply share possible abuse of power with the state. To address social issues, we need more efforts directed at the family and community structures around young people, and initiatives that can mitigate the risk factors of abuse instead of resorting to government control over speech. While age verification is not the answer, those seeking legislative solutions can instead focus their attention on privacy laws—which are more than capable of assisting minors online, no matter the state of their at-home care. Comprehensive data privacy, which EFF has long advocated for, is perhaps the most obvious way to keep the data of young people safe online. Data brokers gather a vast amount of data and assemble new profiles of information as a young person uses the internet. These data sets also contribute to surveillance and teach minors that it is normal to be tracked as they use the web. Banning behavioral ads would remove a major incentive for companies to collect as much data as they do and be able to sell it to whomever will buy it from them. For example, many age-checking tools use data brokers to establish “age estimation” on emails used to sign up for an online service, further incentivizing a vicious cycle of data collection and retention. Ultimately, privacy-encroaching companies are rewarded for the years of mishandling our data with lucrative government contracts. These systems create much more risk online and offline for young people in terms of their privacy over time from online surveillance and in authoritarian political climates. Age verification proponents often acknowledge that there are privacy risks, and dismiss the consequences by claiming the trade off will “protect children.” These systems don’t foster safer online practices for young people; they encourage increasingly invasive ways for governments to define who is and isn’t free to roam online. If we don’t re-establish ways to maintain online anonymity today, our children’s internet could become unrecognizable and unusable for not only them, but many adults as well.  Actions you can take today to protect young people online: Use existing parental controls to decide for yourself what your kid should and shouldn’t see, who they should engage with, etc. Discuss the importance of online privacy and safety with your kids and community. Provide spaces and resources for young people to flexibly communicate with their schools, guardians, and community. Support comprehensive privacy legislation for all. Support legislators’ efforts to regulate the out-of-control data broker industry by banning behavioral ads. Join EFF in opposing mandatory age verification and age gating laws—help us keep your kids safe and protect the future of the internet, privacy, and anonymity.

Legal Intern Alexandra Rhodes contributed to this blog post.  EFF filed an amicus brief urging the Arizona District Court to protect public school students’ freedom of speech and privacy by holding that the use of a school-issued laptop or email account does not categorically mean a student is “on campus.” We argued that students need private digital spaces beyond their school’s reach to speak freely, without the specter of constant school surveillance and punishment.   Surveillance Software Exposed a Bad Joke Made in the Privacy of a Student’s Home  The case, Merrill v. Marana Unified School District, involves a Marana High School student who, while at home one morning before school started, asked his mother for advice about a bad grade he received on an English assignment. His mother said he should talk to his English teacher, so he opened his school-issued Google Chromebook and started drafting an email. The student then wrote a series of jokes in the draft email that he deleted each time. The last joke stated: “GANG GANG GIMME A BETTER GRADE OR I SHOOT UP DA SKOOL HOMIE,” which he narrated out loud to his mother in a silly voice before deleting the draft and closing his computer.   Within the hour, the student’s mother received a phone call from the school principal, who said that Gaggle surveillance software had flagged a threat from her son and had sent along the screenshot of the draft email. The student’s mother attempted to explain the situation and reassure the principal that there was no threat. Nevertheless, despite her reassurances and the student’s lack of disciplinary record or history of violence, the student was ultimately suspended over the draft email—even though he was physically off campus at the time, before school hours, and had never sent the email.   After the student’s suspension was unsuccessfully challenged, the family sued the school district alleging infringement of the student’s right to free speech under the First Amendment and violation of the student’s right to due process under the Fourteenth Amendment.  Public School Students Have Greater First Amendment Protection for Off-Campus Speech  The U.S. Supreme Court has addressed the First Amendment rights of public school students in a handful of cases.  Most notably, in Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969), the Court held that students may not be punished for their on-campus speech unless the speech “materially and substantially” disrupted the school day or invaded the rights of others.  Decades later, in Mahanoy Area School District v. B.L. by and through Levy (2021), in which EFF filed a brief, the Court further held that schools have less leeway to regulate student speech when that speech occurs off campus. Importantly, the Court stated that schools should have a limited ability to punish off-campus speech because “from the student speaker’s perspective, regulations of off-campus speech, when coupled with regulations of on-campus speech, include all the speech a student utters during the full 24-hour day.”  The Ninth Circuit has further held that off-campus speech is only punishable if it bears a “sufficient nexus” to the school and poses a credible threat of violence.  In this case, therefore, the extent of the school district’s authority to regulate student speech is tied to whether the high schooler was on or off campus at the time of the speech. The student here was at home and thus physically off campus when he wrote the joke in question; he wrote the draft before school hours; and the joke was not emailed to anyone on campus or anyone associated with the campus.   Yet the school district is arguing that his use of a school-issued Google Chromebook and Google Workspace for Education account (including the email account) made his speech—and makes all student speech—automatically “on campus” for purposes of justifying punishment under the First Amendment.   Schools Provide Students with Valuable Digital Tools—But Also Subject Them to Surveillance  EFF supports the plaintiffs’ argument that the student’s speech was “off campus,” did not bear a sufficient nexus to the school, and was not a credible threat. In our amicus brief, we urged the trial court at minimum to reject a rule that the use of a school-issued device or cloud account always makes a student’s speech “on campus.”    Our amicus brief supports the plaintiffs’ First Amendment arguments through the lens of surveillance, emphasizing that digital speech and digital privacy are inextricably linked.   As we explained, Marana Unified School District, like many schools and districts across the country, offers students free Google Chromebooks and requires them to have an online Google Account to access the various cloud apps in Google Workspace for Education, including the Gmail app.   Marana Unified School District also uses three surveillance technologies that are integrated into Chromebooks and Google Workspace for Education: Gaggle, GoGuardian, and Securly. These surveillance technologies collectively can monitor virtually everything students do on their laptops and online, from the emails and documents they write (or even just draft) to the websites they visit.   School Digital Surveillance Chills Student Speech and Further Harms Students  In our amicus brief, we made four main arguments against a blanket rule that categorizes any use of a school-issued device or cloud account as “on campus,” even if the student is geographically off campus or outside of school hours.   First, we pointed out that such a rule will result in students having no reprieve from school authority, which runs counter to the Supreme Court’s admonition in Mahanoy not to regulate “all the speech a student utters during the full 24-hour day.” There must be some place that is “off campus” for public school students even when using digital tools provided by schools, otherwise schools will reach too far into students’ lives.   Second, we urged the court to reject such an “on campus” rule to mitigate the chilling effect of digital surveillance on students’ freedom of speech—that is, the risk that students will self-censor and choose not to express themselves in certain ways or access certain information that may be disfavored by school officials. If students know that no matter where they are or what they are doing with their Chromebooks and Google Accounts, the school is watching and the school has greater legal authority to punish them because they are always “on campus,” students will undoubtedly curb their speech.  Third, we argued that such an “on campus” rule will exacerbate existing inequities in public schools among students of different socio-economic backgrounds. It would distinctly disadvantage lower-income students who are more likely to rely on school-issued devices because their families cannot afford a personal laptop or tablet. This creates a “pay for privacy” scheme: lower-income students are subject to greater school-directed surveillance and related discipline for digital speech, while wealthier students can limit surveillance by using personal laptops and email accounts, enabling them to have more robust free speech protections.  Fourth, such an “on campus” rule will incentivize public schools to continue eroding student privacy by subjecting them to near constant digital surveillance. The student surveillance technologies schools use are notoriously privacy invasive and inaccurate, causing various harms to students—including unnecessary investigations and discipline, disclosure of sensitive information, and frustrated learning.  We urge the Arizona District Court to protect public school students’ freedom of speech and privacy by rejecting this approach to school-managed technology. As we said in our brief, students, especially high schoolers, need some sphere of digital autonomy, free of surveillance, judgment, and punishment, as much as anyone else—to express themselves, to develop their identities, to learn and explore, to be silly or crude, and even to make mistakes.  

A beautiful moment. As one of the best and brightest stars flying out of Oklahoma in the red dirt scene, it’s hard to point to a more important artist in the genre right now than Wyatt Flores. After breaking out back in 2023 thanks to the continued success of his 2022 platinum single, “Please Don’t Go,” and other viral hits such as “Losing Sleep” and “Break My Bones,” the 24-year-old singer/songwriter stunned everyone upon the release of his debut album, Welcome To The Plains, last October. If there’s one thing that can be gathered throughout Flores’ journey as both an artist and human being, it’s the simple fact that he has a huge heart. Whether it’s his intense focus on mental health, notably taking a break from touring earlier this year and sharing his battles through tracks such as “I Believe in God” and “Oh Susannah,” or his reverence for his homestate of Oklahoma, it’s clear that the “Milwaukee” singer never forgets to show love to those closest to him. That was put on full display recently when Flores performed the Turnpike Troubadours‘ classic, “Diamonds & Gasoline,” during his best friend’s wedding over the weekend. Taking to Instagram today, Flores would congratulate both Conner and Kayli Powell in a post highlighting moments from the wedding. In the caption, the Oklahoma native would reflect on the impact the couple have had on him the past four years they’ve known each other, noting that he wouldn’t be the same person without them. “Congratulations to the Powell’s who have been my best friends for the last four years it’s been incredible to watch them meet each other, fall in love, and choose forever together. I would not be who I am without them and I am so grateful to have them in my life and to be a part of theirs.” View this post on Instagram Last night, however, he also uploaded his heartfelt performance of “Diamonds & Gasoline” during the Powell’s first dance, and it was nothing short of spectacular. View this post on Instagram Of course, “Diamonds & Gasoline” has often been named one of Turnpike’s signature songs in their discography. Penned independently by frontman, Evan Felker, the track appears on their 2010 debut album of the same name. And while it’s hard to point to where the song peaks due to Felker’s world-class songwriting, it’s hard to argue that the chorus, which is exactly what Flores himself uploaded in the Instagram post, isn’t one of the most poignant depictions of love and dedication found in any track produced in the 21st century. “And I would buy for you a diamondOr myself some gasolineIf I can’t afford you darlin’Then I can’t afford to dreamAnd is it time I should be movin’?Is it time I settle down?Will I sit still or will I feel the wheels a-spinnin’ ’round?” It’s hard to even imagine the emotions that both Wyatt, Conner and Kayli were all going through during the moment. It’s safe to say, however, that hearing your best friend perform one of the finest love songs ever written during your first dance is a hard moment to ever top. While you’re here, fire up Turnpike’s timeless original version. Wyatt Flores Tour Dates December 2 – Nashville, Tennessee – Grand Ole Opry December 11 – Stateline, Nevada – Tahoe Blue Event Center December 13 – Mesa, Arizona – Mesa AmphitheaterThe post Wyatt Flores Delivers Heartfelt Cover of Turnpike Troubadours’ “Diamonds & Gasoline” At Best Friend’s Wedding first appeared on Whiskey Riff.

The bassist Glen Matlock, guitarist Steve Jones and drummer Paul Cook started touring under the name Sex Pistols again in 2024 and will continue to perform in 2026. The band which now is fronted by 41 year-old British singer Frank Carter has tour dates scheduled in England next July and August. Sex Pistols announces 2026 tour dates with Frank Carter July 6 - Munich, Germany - Tollwood Sommerfestival, Musik Arena 11 - The Piece Hall, Halifax, with The Undertones and Panic Shack 12 - Castlefield Bowl, Manchester with Dr John Cooper Clarke August 1 - Cardiff Castle with The Stranglers, The Undertones and Panic Shack 2 - Scarborough Open Air Theatre with The Stranglers, The Undertones The original vocalist John Lydon doesn’t have a good relationship with his ex-bandmates and even sued the guitarist Steve Jones because of the TV series Pistol, released in 2022, which told the story of the band from Jones’ point of view. He also tried to prevent the songs of the band from being used on the show. But he lost the legal battle and the show was released with the original tracks. https://youtu.be/CU0fu_0VQBU Formed in London, England back in 1975, the Sex Pistols are one of the most important Punk Rock bands of all time. Although they released only one album "Never Mind the Bollocks: Here's The Sex Pistols" (1977), they became a huge influence to countless musicians all over the world. They not only became an inspiration for Punk artists but also for people from other music genres, such as Guns N' Roses, for example. The band was active from 1975 to 1978, reuniting the original line-up in 1996, 2002 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2008.The post Sex Pistols announces 2026 tour dates with Frank Carter appeared first on Rock and Roll Garage.

Guns N' Roses announced they will release two new songs which are called "Nothin" and "Atlas" next December 2, being the first time the group put out new music since 2023. They also revealed a massive number of tour dates in North America, South America and Europe. Nowadays the band is formed by three classic members: Axl Rose (vocals), Duff McKagan (bass), and Slash (guitar), who are accompanied by Dizzy Reed (Keyboards, piano), Richard Fortus (Guitar), Isaac Carpenter (Drums) and Melissa Reese (Keyboards, synthesizers). Guns N' Roses 2026 tour dates March 28 - Monterrey, Mexico - Tecate Pa'l Norte April 1 - Porto Alegre, Brazil - Estádio Beira Rio 4 - São Paulo, Brazil - Monsters Of Rock 7 - São José do Rio Preto, Brazil - Alberto Bertelli Lucatto 10 - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Engenhao 12 - Vitoria, Brazil - Estádio Estadual Kleber José de Andrade 15 - Salvador, Brazil - Arena Fonte Nova 18 - Fortaleza, Brazil - Arena Castelão 21 - Sao Luiz, Brazil - Estádio Governador João Castelo “Castelão” 25 - Belém do Para, Brazil - Estadio Olimpico do Para “Mangueirão” May 5 - Hollywood, FL - Hard Rock Hollywood 7 - Daytona Beach, FL - Welcome To Rockville June 4 - Gliwice, Poland - PreZero Arena Gliwice 6 - Gliwice, Poland - PreZero Arena Gliwice 10 - Dublin, Ireland - 3Arena 12 - Donington, UK - Download 18 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Ziggo Dome 20 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Ziggo Dome 23 - Berlin, Germany - Uber Arena 25 - Berlin, Germany - Uber Arena 28 - Antwerp, Belgium - AFAS Dome July 1 - Paris, France - Accor Arena 3 - Paris, France - Accor Arena 23 - Raleigh, NC - Cater-Finley Stadium 26 - Saratoga Springs, NY - Saratoga Performing Arts Center 29 - Tinley Park, IL - Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre August 1 - Hershey, PA - Hersheypark Stadium 5 - Toronto, ON - Rogers Stadium 8 - Shakopee, MN - Mystic Lake Amphitheater 12 - East Rutherford, NJ - MetLife Stadium 16 - St. Louis, MO - Busch Stadium 19 - Kansas City, MO - Morton Amphitheater 22 - Las Vegas, NV - Allegiant Stadium 26 - Edmonton, AB - Commonwealth Stadium 29 - Vancouver, BC - BC Place September 2 - San Diego, CA - Snapdragon Stadium 5 - Pasadena, CA - Rose Bowl 9 - Arlington, TX - Globe Life Field 12 - Ridgedale, MO - Thunder Ridge Nature Arena 16 - San Antonio, TX - Alamodome 19 - Atlanta, GA - Truist Park https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CmLMOF7Bfdw&pp=ygUjd2hvIGlzIHRoZSBuZXcgZ3VucyBuIHJvc2VzIGRydW1tZXI%3DThe post Guns N’ Roses announces new songs and 2026 tour dates appeared first on Rock and Roll Garage.

Megadeth will release their final album next January 23 and in February will start their farewell in great style, in a tour featuring Anthrax and Exodus as special guests. So far the shows are scheduled only in Canada and will happen in Victoria, Abbotsford, Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, London, Ottawa, Halifax, Moncton and Quebec City. Besides Dave Mustaine the band's current line-up has Dirk Verbeuren (Drums),  James LoMenzo (Bass) and Teemu Mäntysaari (Guitar). Megadeth tour with Anthrax and Exodus February 15 - Victoria, BC - Save-on-Foods Memorial Centre 17 - Abbotsford, BC - Rogers Forum 18 - Kelowna, BC - Prospera Place 20 - Calgary, AB - Scotiabank, Saddledome 21 - Edmonton, AB - Rogers Place 24 - Saskatoon, SK - SaskTel Centre 25 - Winnipeg, MB - Canada Life Centre 28 - London, ON - Canada Life Place March 1 - Ottawa, ON - Canadian Tire Centre 3 - Halifax, NS - Scotiabank Centre 4 - Moncton, NB - Avenir Centre 6 - Quebec City, QC - Videotron Centre 2026 tour dates without Anthrax and Exodus January 17 - La Vergne, USA - Let There Be Shred: Immersive Listening Event March 1 - Ottawa, Canada - Canadian Tire Centre 3 - Halifax, Canada - Scotiabank Centre 4 - Moncton, Canada - Avenir Centre 6 - Québec City, Canada - Videotron Centre April 23 - Lima, Peru - Costa 21 26 - Bogotá, Colombia - Movistar Arena 27 - Bogotá, Colombia - Movistar Arena 30 - Buenos Aires, Argentina - TBD May 2 - São Paulo, Brazil - Espaco Unimed 4 - Santiago, Chile - Movistar Arena 5 - Santiago, Chile - Movistar Arena 8 - Monterrey, Mexico - Arena Monterrey 10 - Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Ciudad de Mexico 11 - Mexico City, Mexico - Arena Ciudad de Mexico 13 - Guadalajara, Mexico - Arena Guadalajara June 2 - Hanover, Germany - Heinz von Heiden Arena 10 - Hradec Králové, Czechia - Rock For People / Park 360 14 - Ferrara, Italy - Ferrara Summer Festival / Piazza Ariostea 26 - Helsinki, Finland - Suvilahti / Tuska Festival August 29 - Toronto, Canada - Scotiabank Arena 30 - Toronto, Canada - Scotiabank Arena September 3 - Montréal, Canada - Parc Jean Drapeau 5 - Harrison, USA - Sports Illustrated Stadium 6 - Harrison, USA - Sports Illustrated Stadium 9 - Boston, USA - TD Garden 11 - Bristow, USA - Jiffy Lube Live 12 - Charlotte, USA - PNC Music Pavilion 15 - Hershey, USA - Hersheypark Stadium 19 - Shakopee, USA - Mystic Lake Amphitheater 22 - Tinley Park, USA - Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre 25 - Los Angeles, USA - BMO Stadium 26 - Los Angeles, USA - BMO Stadium 29 - San Antonio, USA - Alamodome The band already released two singles from their upcoming album and Mustaine said their farewell tour might last 3 to 5 years. https://youtu.be/-E4O5VlRYOYThe post Megadeth announces tour with Anthrax and Exodus appeared first on Rock and Roll Garage.