Should all forums be age restricted ?

Should forums be age restricted?
I think forums should have a minimum age of 13. That's when they're old enough to make their own decisions and what not. There's no reason for children younger than 13 to be on a forum.
 
Yeah. That's what it should be for most forums anyway like Gaming, Tech, Art etc.

For more universal forums like kids forums and hobbies, there really is no age restriction for these types as long as their moderated.
 
The main thing is it depends what topics are being discussed within the community. If it's a general discussion forum then I can see not really having an age restriction. But lets say that someone has a forum discussing crime scenes, serial killers and famous murders......I can see having an age restriction on a forum like that, despite how mature some of the younger generations might be. Besides, there are some subject matter that the parents should be discussing with their children (or shielding their kids from it, if that's what they choose to do) instead of kids being allowed to discuss those things with complete strangers online.

The other thing is the people in charge of the forum. I recognize that everyone is going to have different opinions on the matter. But the people that own the forum and/or manage the forum are going to be the ones that set the pace for that specific community as far as age restrictions go. There will be many things that they will take into account, one of them being the niche` of the forum and the content that will be discussed.
 
Seeing as you have no way to enforce an age restriction, I don't see why you would bother to have one. What would be the difference be with having one versus not having one when you can't enforce it?
 
Seeing as you have no way to enforce an age restriction, I don't see why you would bother to have one. What would be the difference be with having one versus not having one when you can't enforce it?

I'm guessing that you're saying 'Why would you have one versus not having one'. Well having one means that your forum is for content, people ~13 shouldn't be seeing then an age restriction is important. If your forum is for more universal things such as gaming or interests then an age restriction probably isn't important.

Age restrictions are designed to keep minors off of sites that may contain anything inappropriate. But kids(mainly 10 - 12) year olds, know their way around the restriction and just lie about their age so sometimes they are useless.
 
Although COPPA tries to stop kids going into social media and forums, it's essentially useless.

So should we stop rating movies, music, and television shows then? The age restriction is simply a legal guideline, it's not exactly meant to be enforced.
 
In my opinion, not all the forums should be age restricted, it depends on the forum and its subject of discussion.
 
Although COPPA tries to stop kids going into social media and forums, it's essentially useless.

So should we stop rating movies, music, and television shows then? The age restriction is simply a legal guideline, it's not exactly meant to be enforced.

No. COPPA(Short for Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act), is to keep kids safe on the internet and tp make sure they do not get access to inappropriate material or see anything that could break the child. It doesn't mean that we need to stop rating, movies, games, music etc. Those are done by seperate organizations and governments to rate them.
 
No. COPPA(Short for Childrens Online Privacy Protection Act), is to keep kids safe on the internet and tp make sure they do not get access to inappropriate material or see anything that could break the child. It doesn't mean that we need to stop rating, movies, games, music etc. Those are done by seperate organizations and governments to rate them.

I'm just saying it's necessary, although I'm sure it's not as effective as one would hope.
 
I am surprised that I somehow haven't ever replied to this thread for as long as it's been here...anyway, like many replies here have stated, age restrictions only stop the honest people, those that want to join will join one way or another.
 
So should we stop rating movies, music, and television shows then? The age restriction is simply a legal guideline, it's not exactly meant to be enforced.
Discord enforces theirs. Say that you're under 13 in many places there and you will be instantly banned from the entire service. The closer to the staff the discord is, the worse it is.
 
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