OpenSimWorld is the directory of 3D Virtual Worlds based on OpenSimulator and connected through the HyperGrid. Learn More
New Members
Jamenai, SiaChun, Crank Carter, Marky, MarkB, CherryBelle, Anuket, Altervue, MILA_BECKER, Serega, Evilone, FrenzyPenguin, AllurrraGreenman, Princessdiamond, Koslov, JacobWildWestFarm, Ray_Seabury, Kara_Islands, EllaAlisonlewis, Charm_MonclerLikes
Looks like OpenSim users are getting increasingly anxious that e.g. Mississippi and UK law enforcement will kill every last OpenSim grid on the grounds of their age verification laws, what with none of them having verified the real-life age of all their users. Even if a grid runs in Kazakhstan under a Russian domain with a Kazakh and Russian admin team.
"This will so totally happen!"
The self-same people, however, appear not to be afraid at all that Linden Lab and SL content creators will kill ANY OpenSim grid on the grounds of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, what with almost all of them blistering with stolen SL content. Not even if a grid runs in the USA under a US domain with an all-American admin team.
"This will so totally NEVER happen!"
Pray tell, why should the former wipe OpenSim out in no time while the latter hasn't even happened to one measly OpenSim grid in over ten years of copybotting tons of expensive premium luxury content in SL and offering it in OpenSim as full-perm freebies? Not even after these announcements by Linden Lab themselves from early this year?
https://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2025/01/linden-lab-sl-ip-rights-...
https://avadelaney.co.uk/musings/a-message-to-sl-content-t...
Oh, and OpenSim cannot survive without selling the most private personal data of every last one of its users to some big, commercial, corporate age-verification service? But at the same time, OpenSim cannot survive either without breaking international copyright and intellectual property laws left and right?
Oh, and by the way: The most that Mississippi and the UK can do against a grid is try to fine it. The most that Linden Lab can do against a grid is Cease & Desist it out of existence.
"This will so totally happen!"
The self-same people, however, appear not to be afraid at all that Linden Lab and SL content creators will kill ANY OpenSim grid on the grounds of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, what with almost all of them blistering with stolen SL content. Not even if a grid runs in the USA under a US domain with an all-American admin team.
"This will so totally NEVER happen!"
Pray tell, why should the former wipe OpenSim out in no time while the latter hasn't even happened to one measly OpenSim grid in over ten years of copybotting tons of expensive premium luxury content in SL and offering it in OpenSim as full-perm freebies? Not even after these announcements by Linden Lab themselves from early this year?
https://nwn.blogs.com/nwn/2025/01/linden-lab-sl-ip-rights-...
https://avadelaney.co.uk/musings/a-message-to-sl-content-t...
Oh, and OpenSim cannot survive without selling the most private personal data of every last one of its users to some big, commercial, corporate age-verification service? But at the same time, OpenSim cannot survive either without breaking international copyright and intellectual property laws left and right?
Oh, and by the way: The most that Mississippi and the UK can do against a grid is try to fine it. The most that Linden Lab can do against a grid is Cease & Desist it out of existence.
Liked by: 
Comments
My grid has no Uk based members so for now i am safe. Only grids based in UK or have a lot of Uk members have to do that age verification thing.
like(0)
Here's the text of Senate Bill 2346 if anyone wants to delve into my super fun hobby. lol
https://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/documents/2023/html/SB/2...
like(1)
https://billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/documents/2023/html/SB/2...
I don't personally worry too much, because I know almost everyone who is a member, or HG visitor, and have seen them on Facebook, etc in pictures, holding their grandkids and stuff. I think that is true for most of us. We are a small community. If this law does become a real worry. What I would be concerned about are new people just appearing out of the blue. Maybe what would work is kind of a hive-mind system where a grid owner can ask if anyone knows who this bird is... If someone is unfortunate enough to be a complete stranger. Ask for a scanned in license or ID, and a selfie holding it. That is a pretty common practice these days. Key points of the law are: Specifically, it targets websites where a significant portion of the material is pornographic. The act stipulates that any entity that performs the required age verification must not retain any identifying information of the individual after access has been granted.
So you basically make reasonable efforts to verify the person's age, and then destroy the identifying information after granting access. So by the wording of the law, there is no way to prove or disprove that you scanned an ID, or the specific method used. A large corporation or high traffic online service with thousands of signups a day, would obviously need to use a service that uses biometrics, etc, and no human can visually verify the photos obviously. On a small scale like OpenSim, personal attention can be applied to each applicant.
The law also says the website or service must provide a SUBSTANTIAL amount of material harmful to minors. If your grid is mostly forests and fairies and sailboats, and just has a few nude beaches or something, the law doesn't apply.
Section 4: Subsection (2) states (2) No internet service provider, or its affiliates or subsidiaries, search engine, or cloud service provider shall be held to have violated the provisions of this section solely for providing access or connection to or from a website or other information or content on the internet or a facility, system, or network not under that provider's control, including transmission, downloading, intermediate storage, access software, or other to the extent such provider is not responsible for the creation of the content of the communication that constitutes material harmful to minors.
So that means that if your users hypergrid travel to some place of ill repute, out of your control, it's not your problem.
It is possible, we may have to worry about this, if we have a grid where people are just doing adult stuff 24/7. Sadly, I know of no such den of delight. lol
When i ran for State Representative last year, I read about 1500 New Hampshire House and Senate bills, and got used to knowing what to look for. This is kind of a bullshit bill that makes it look like politicians are doing something, but doesn't have much teeth.
That being said. I am personally interested in adults having a space to be free, but also taking some reasonable steps to protect kids. We all should be. We're creative people. We can deal with this.
like(2)
So you basically make reasonable efforts to verify the person's age, and then destroy the identifying information after granting access. So by the wording of the law, there is no way to prove or disprove that you scanned an ID, or the specific method used. A large corporation or high traffic online service with thousands of signups a day, would obviously need to use a service that uses biometrics, etc, and no human can visually verify the photos obviously. On a small scale like OpenSim, personal attention can be applied to each applicant.
The law also says the website or service must provide a SUBSTANTIAL amount of material harmful to minors. If your grid is mostly forests and fairies and sailboats, and just has a few nude beaches or something, the law doesn't apply.
Section 4: Subsection (2) states (2) No internet service provider, or its affiliates or subsidiaries, search engine, or cloud service provider shall be held to have violated the provisions of this section solely for providing access or connection to or from a website or other information or content on the internet or a facility, system, or network not under that provider's control, including transmission, downloading, intermediate storage, access software, or other to the extent such provider is not responsible for the creation of the content of the communication that constitutes material harmful to minors.
So that means that if your users hypergrid travel to some place of ill repute, out of your control, it's not your problem.
It is possible, we may have to worry about this, if we have a grid where people are just doing adult stuff 24/7. Sadly, I know of no such den of delight. lol
When i ran for State Representative last year, I read about 1500 New Hampshire House and Senate bills, and got used to knowing what to look for. This is kind of a bullshit bill that makes it look like politicians are doing something, but doesn't have much teeth.
That being said. I am personally interested in adults having a space to be free, but also taking some reasonable steps to protect kids. We all should be. We're creative people. We can deal with this.
Last November I lost by about 30 votes. I am running again next time around, more prepared, and because of my job, I know almost every person in my district. I will likely be a State Representative in New Hampshire, in the 2027-2028 session, and our state is almost guaranteed to follow suit with a similar bone-headed bill that we'll have to deal with.
like(0)
We can also wait and see, and pay attention to what other similar platforms like VRchat, Roblox, Meta VR and all those do in the coming months to attempt to comply. As I said. We do have the advantage of being small, and the grid owners or staff actually do have the capacity to personally check people out, and tell people "sorry, we can't help you" if they won't upload their ID. (if it comes to that) I check ID's just to sell cranky old people cough syrup or nasal spray everyday. People will just do it if they have to, and survive the indignity.
like(0)
There is no need to fear copyright in the US or child pornography laws in Russia or Kazakhstan.
NOBODY is interested in a dying group of hysterical old men who are only concerned with scandals and stupid accusations.
Look around! How many of us are left? A few died this year, a few more left... How many are left? Can you count to 50 or 60? Well... that's enough! No illusions!
like(2)
NOBODY is interested in a dying group of hysterical old men who are only concerned with scandals and stupid accusations.
Look around! How many of us are left? A few died this year, a few more left... How many are left? Can you count to 50 or 60? Well... that's enough! No illusions!
i agree os probably isn't on the radar. and most grids don't advertise as "adult site" ie porn. in my opinion the problem with the C&D is that Linden does not own the IP of creator's objects. likely expose them to take legal action on behalf of the creators. the creators can file a DMCA take down but if nobody takes it down they have to hire a lawyer and go to us federal court. which costs a couple of dollars. so it's not so simple.
like(1)
