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Product Information

Unique!

This product uses a unique combination of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-Sign Act), 15 U.S.C. §7000, and the Unsworn Declarations Act, 28 U.S.C. §1746, which together allow for the submission of electronic documents under the penalties of perjury. These copyrighted statements, used in conjunction with a proprietary birth date verification script, amount to the equivalent of an ‘electronic affidavit’ stating the user’s name and birth date. Moreover, the BirthDateVerifier™ Version 4.0 (“Verifier”), script records the user’s IP address, along with the time and date of attempted access, thereby providing valuable support logs in the event proof of a user’s identity is later required. All users are required to agree to the application of U.S. law to govern the transaction, thus making the device effective worldwide. The entire domain’s inner pages are blocked by the Verifier unless the user enters through the birth date verification page. Therefore, all free tours or promotional content can be protected by a central access page. There is simply no comparison in the field of unpaid age verification.

 

Innovative!

Users are not required to provide personal information such as addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers or drivers’ license information, as was found to be constitutionally problematic in Ashcroft v. ACLU, 322 F.3d 240 (3rd Cir. 2003). In addition, any requirement that the user pay even a small amount of money to access constitutionally protected expression, may not pass constitutional muster according to the federal courts. The Verifier is simple to use, and provides a viable alternative to competing forms of age verification. Any mark adopted as the user’s electronic “signature” will suffice for the “name” information, allowing users to provide initials or even an “X” in the name box. The minimal amount of personal information requested is designed to comply with the dictates of the law while minimizing the level of identifying information required to gain access to protected materials.

 

Original!

A thorough search of online age check devices did not reveal any similar product currently available. Most online age verification is performed by the user’s tender of credit card information or through a simple “Click here if over 18” splash page. Both methods are seriously flawed. Merchant banks have objected to the use of credit cards for age verification in recent times. Although use of credit cards has become more or less standard in the industry for age verification, such use is considered an unauthorized and improper use of such cards by at least one major issuer. Moreover, minors can readily obtain credit or debit cards, thus substantially decreasing the level of validity of age verification using that method. Simple click through splash screens have become somewhat of a national joke as a viable means of age verification, and should not be relied upon in the current legal environment. The BirthDateVerifier™ is the product of substantial legal research, creative thinking, and expert programming which, when combined on a single Warning Page, provides state of the art age verification without the need for excessive personal information or any form of payment. The computer script and Verifier terms are all protected by several copyrights, which have been filed with the U.S. Copyright Office. In addition, the invention has been approved for patent protection by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

 

FAQ:

1. How can I license this product?

The BirthDateVerifier is being licensed on a restricted basis to clients of Weston, Garrou & DeWitt, and a select group of others. Contact Lawrence G. Walters, Esq. at Larry@LawrenceWalters.com to learn more about licensing this device

2. Has the Verifier been tested in court?

No. Thankfully, none of our clients using this device have been prosecuted for providing harmful materials to minors under state law. The federal law prohibiting this conduct, the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), has been enjoined by the United States Supreme Court, pending further proceedings in the lower courts. Therefore, the law has never been enforced. One provision of COPA allows webmasters to use, as a valid form of age verification, "other reasonable measures that are feasible under available technology." It is hoped that the courts will ultimately recognize the Verifier as such a "reasonable measure," however it may be that the device is never tested, or that conflicting court decisions are obtained regarding the validity of the product as a means of age verification.

3. Why can’t I just use the warning page language without the law firm’s permission?

All inventions and expressions of ideas are protected under federal intellectual property laws. Ideas are protected by patents, and language or computer programs are protected by copyright laws. Business names such as BirthDateVerifier™ are protected by trademark law. These various forms of intellectual property protection are designed to protect the inventors of products or business methods, allowing those inventors to control their distribution and reproduction. Even slightly different language or devices that accomplish the same process, or express essentially the same concepts, may infringe on intellectual property rights as unauthorized derivative works. It may be that superior or competing age verification devices will be invented that differ significantly from this product, which will not infringe on any intellectual property rights pertaining to this product. However, the use of the Verifier is conditioned on the execution of a valid license agreement, providing the rights to use the copyright and business methods invented by Lawrence G. Walters, Esq.

4. How much does it cost?

The cost to use the device will depend on whether you are a client of the law firm of Weston, Garrou & DeWitt, and how you propose to use it.