Anthropic is expected to request Claude users to verify their age and identity by submitting their government-issued documentation, as stated in a recent update to the company’s privacy policy. 

The AI powerhouse claims this initiative aims to allow users to appeal against having their accounts marked for potential fraudulent behavior instead of facing outright bans, but it unfolds during a period when Anthropic attempts to appease the Trump administration amid a continuing standoff regarding access to its AI services.

In accordance with a new segment in its latest privacy policy released earlier in June, which will come into force on July 8, Anthropic indicates it will require users to validate their age or identity “in certain circumstances,” though no specific instances are provided. 

Although Anthropic has traditionally required users to be above 18 to access Claude, earlier this year, the company implemented age-verification protocols to conform with state and international regulations. Identity verification procedures were also announced but were not included in the company’s privacy policy until more recently.

When activated, the policy will necessitate those users to upload a scanned image of an official passport or driver’s license. Anthropic states it will also gather a user’s selfie photo or video alongside a digitized version for a facial geometry template (which, in some states like Illinois, is deemed legally protected biometric information). Additionally, Anthropic affirms it will maintain a log of the verification outcome, indicating whether the user has attained a certain age.

When contacted by TechCrunch, Anthropic representative Michael Aciman provided a link to an X post made by Anthropic’s Thariq Shihipar, noting that this alteration pertains only to a “small subset of users” whose accounts are flagged but not completely banned. (Anthropic’s representative did not disclose how many users constitutes a subset, though the company is believed to engage tens of millions of users monthly.) 

“[Anthropic’s identity verification policy] was revised on June 17 to enhance the appeals process,” Shihipar mentioned in the post. “It’s unrelated to the Fable or Mythos launches.”

Anthropic indicated it has the right to require users to submit a copy of their identification for several reasons, such as needing users to authenticate themselves for setting up and managing their Claude account, enforcing its terms of service, preventing and examining fraud, abuse, and infractions of its terms, which include illegal or criminal activities, and to investigate and address security concerns.

The decision to monitor more closely who utilizes Anthropic’s AI tools might be one approach for the organization to adhere to an array of ongoing legal disputes, regulatory shifts, and external pressures from the Trump administration.

The tech giant remains in a deadlock with the White House, well over a week after Trump officials compelled Anthropic to retract its latest cybersecurity models over claims of a potential jailbreak that could compromise the models’ safeguards. Other reports have suggested personality conflicts between the company and the Trump administration as the primary reason for the deterioration in relations.

This recent confrontation follows months after the Department of Defense labeled Anthropic a “supply chain risk,” seemingly as retaliation for not permitting the government to utilize its technology for large-scale domestic surveillance or facilitating fully autonomous weaponry.

Anthropic mentioned that it partners with the San Francisco-based firm Persona as its identity-verification provider and that users may “encounter a verification request when using specific features, as part of our standard platform integrity assessments, or other safety and compliance protocols.”

Anthropic stated that it determines how long Persona will keep its users’ identification documents, but Anthropic’s representative did not immediately clarify when the data would be erased. (For context, Roblox, another client of Persona, claims users’ images are discarded “instantly” after processing, minimizing the risk of the information being leaked or taken later.)

Persona may still be subject to U.S. government requests for user information that it retains on its servers.

Persona is supported by Founders Fund, an investment group established by Trump supporter Peter Thiel, who is also an investor in Anthropic. The identity-verification company has received criticism from users regarding its association with Thiel. Earlier this year, Discord selected Persona for its age-verification procedures but quickly reversed its decision following user backlash against the choice of Persona.