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Age checks creep into Linux as systemd gets a DOB field (www.theregister.com)

submitted 9 hours ago by Powderhorn@beehaw.org to c/technology@beehaw.org

31 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Just what I want in my distro.

After weeks of debate, code to record user age was finally merged into the Linux world's favorite system management daemon.

Pull request #40954 to the systemd project is titled "userdb: add birthDate field to JSON user records." It's a new function for the existing userdb service, which adds a field to hold the user's date of birth:

Stores the user's birth date for age verification, as required by recent laws in California (AB-1043), Colorado (SB26-051), Brazil (Lei 15.211/2025), etc.

The contents of the field will be protected from modification except by users with root privileges.

The change comes after the recent release of systemd 260 but unless it is reverted for some reason, it will be part of systemd 261. One of the justifications is to facilitate the new parental controls in Flatpak, which are still in the draft stage.

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[–] schnurrito@discuss.tchncs.de 3 points 7 hours ago (3 children)

The big deal is that it’s on the heels of age verification bullshit that fascists are pushing through with the help of tech bros, so that they can eventually push all of us into a scenario where we have zero privacy.

That's a bit difficult to argue in a world where the most prominent of such laws was passed in California, where Democrats control the entire legislative process.

I have not looked up the voting record for it, but would suspect that, like most of the worst laws in the US, it was enthusiastically supported by both parties? Am I wrong about that?

[–] Powderhorn@beehaw.org 2 points 3 hours ago

From your instance, I'm guessing you have limited knowledge of the American political system. I don't mean this as an insult; I couldn't tell you a damn thing about CDU/CSU policies (AfD, of course, is easy to parse). The Democratic Party is just as captured as the Nazi one. It's all corporate money, so the real difference between red states and blue states is politicians in blue states at least pretend to care for the working class.

[–] orca@orcas.enjoying.yachts 1 points 3 hours ago (1 children)

Yeah, across the board participation. Because of heavy lobbying.

[–] masterofn001@lemmy.ca 1 points 37 minutes ago

And none of this will prevent a single incidence of child abuse.

[–] LukeZaz@beehaw.org 2 points 5 hours ago

passed in California, where Democrats control the entire legislative process.

I think that's the "with the help of tech bros" part. Rather high population of those in California, and boy do they have lobbying money.