On July 25, 2025, an X (formerly known as Twitter) user named Dany Sterkhov publicly revealed a method to circumvent Discord’s newly implemented age verification system in the United Kingdom, exploiting the photo mode feature in the video game Death Stranding. Sterkhov’s post included a demonstration on X, showing how Discord’s verification could be bypassed by utilizing a virtual “selfie” of the game’s protagonist, Sam Porter Bridges, in place of a real user’s image.
The release of this exploit coincided with the UK’s enforcement of the Online Safety Act, which mandates stricter age verification measures for accessing adult content online. Discord, like several other platforms, had recently integrated a verification process powered by k-ID, requiring users to either upload a scan of government-issued identification or complete a live video selfie that meets specific movement prompts, such as opening and closing the mouth.
Sterkhov ingeniously manipulated the photo mode in Death Stranding to simulate these necessary gestures, guiding the in-game character to perform the required actions in front of a camera. Once submitted, the system accepted the computer-generated “selfie” and approved access without requiring any real personal identification or authentic photographs from the user. The demonstration quickly gained traction online, with numerous outlets and individual users verifying the efficacy of the method across Discord and, in some cases, other platforms—including Reddit—that rely on similar face-based age checks.
However, not all verification technologies proved vulnerable to this exploit. The Yoti system, used by Bluesky, reportedly succeeded in recognizing and rejecting the Death Stranding-based bypass attempt. This discrepancy underscores varying technical capabilities between verification vendors.
