Introduction

I used to spend countless hours on Discord, chatting with friends or strangers, exploring developer communities or niche corners of the internet. It felt like a safe and private space... Until I came across their latest announcement.

That announcement made me pause.

Summary

Discord's recent press release outlines the global roll out of its "teen-by-default" settings, coming in early March. According to them, these settings are designed to give youngsters heavy protections while allowing verified adults. According to the announcement, users may engage in age assurance using facial age estimation, ID verification, or Discord's own inference models.

Non-verified users will face content filters, restricted access to age-gated spaces in order to provide a "safer and more inclusive experience" for teens.

They claim that the verifications are processed in a way to "minimize the data collected and stored." and that your selfies are "processed on device and never stored." and IDs are "processed to get your age only and then deleted", fine, right?

What does this mean?

On paper, the teen-by-default roll out seems like a step forward in user safety. Teens get content filters, restricted access to some channels and guidance to prevent unwanted interactions.

But the privacy implications go far deeper than just filters and teen mode. Discord’s age verification system, whether it's facial age estimation, ID uploads or behavioral inference requires the platform to process extremely sensitive personal data. On paper, Discord says that selfies used for AI age estimation are processed on‑device and never leave your phone or computer, and that ID scans are deleted after verification. That sounds reassuring, until you look at the broader context.

Privacy concerns

Even if Discord promises to handle sensitive data responsibly, recent incidents have proven otherwise. In October 2025, one of Discord's third-party support vendors was comprised, exposing sensitive user information including government-issued ID photos submitted during age-related appeals, contact details and IP addresses. Roughly 70,000 users were affected according to their article at least that's what they say. According to this article, the cybercrime group Scattered Lapsus$ Hunters claims to have exfiltrated 1.5 terabytes of sensitive information, including over 2.1 million government-issued identification photos

Last but not least, photos are not the only concerning factor. Your behavior will also be analyzed by an AI. Every message, interaction, and server you join will be processed by their model, which will try to guess your age based on patterns in your activity. This means that your actions could feed into a digital profile used to classify you.

What you can do

While Discord’s teen-by-default system might feel unavoidable, there are ways to take care of your privacy and avoid data exposure.

1. Think twice before submitting IDs or selfies

Only provide them if absolute necessary. Remember that even if Discord promises deletion, third-party breaches can happen

2. Limit personal information in messages

Avoid sharing sensitive details or personal expressions that could be used to infer your age or identity. Consider keeping conversations neutral and minimizing identifiable information.

3. Adjust privacy settings

Consider turning off data collection and try using a client such as Vesktop

4. Erase your digital fingerprints on Discord

See next section

5. Delete your Discord account (optional)

How to Remove Your Digital Footprint from Discord

If you’re not ready to leave Discord entirely, you can still significantly reduce the amount of data tied to your identity.

1. Clean up your account history

Delete all your messages using tools such as undiscord or Redact

2. Leave unnecessary servers

Each server you join contributes to your behavioral profile. Leaving unused or irrelevant servers limits the metadata Discord can collect about you.

3. Strip down your profile

Remove profile pictures, bios, custom statuses, linked accounts, and any information that could be used to identify or classify you. Stick to a neutral username and avatar.

4. Revoke third-party connections

Disconnect all apps, bots and external services linked to your Discord account.

Safer alternatives

There are viable and open-source alternatives that prioritize privacy and user-control.

Signal

Signal is a secure messaging service

Matrix (Element)

Element is a Matrix-based end-to-end encrypted messenger and secure collaboration app

Teamspeak

TeamSpeak is a proprietary voice-over-Internet Protocol application service for audio communication between users on a chat channel