Anthropic has updated its privacy policy to state that consumer Claude users may be asked to submit a government-issued photo ID. The revised policy was published in early June 2026 and takes effect on July 8.
Effective July 8, 2026 · Anthropic
Claude May Now Ask for Your Photo ID and a Live Selfie
Anthropic's updated privacy policy lets it require government-issued ID and a facial-geometry scan from consumer users in certain cases — handled by a third party. The change has sparked sharp pushback over privacy.
3
consumer plans covered: Free, Pro, Max
~5
minutes to complete verification
18+
minimum age — driving the new age assurance
Who has to verify — and who doesn't
How it works
Verification is handled by third party Persona Identities , which collects and retains the data. Anthropic says it does not copy the images into its own systems and does not use them for model training.
Trigger:
→
Submit photo ID + live selfie
→
Persona checks & stores data
→
Access granted (retry if failed)
SOME SEE A NEED
Blocks bots and deters multiple accounts
Helps meet age-verification laws & the EU AI Act
Applies to "certain capabilities," not all users
SHARP PUSHBACK
"Do I need an ID just to talk to an AI?"
Persona was dropped by Discord amid data-exposure issues
A 15-year-old's account was reportedly suspended over an ID request
Users signal cancellations & moves to open-source rivals
Data collected by the partner
ID image and details · photo and video · a facial geometry template that numerically encodes facial features. Retention and deletion specifics remain unpublished — and even after passing, accounts can still be suspended for policy violations.
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