Today, most minors can easily access content online. Some of this content is age-restricted products or services that can cause damage to a child and business. That’s why as a healthcare business owner, you need to have an age verification solution on your ecommerce platform. 

Age verification helps to protect vulnerable minors from accessing adult-exclusive health products and services while enabling businesses to stay compliant. 

A study showed that 6,500 children between the ages of 11-17 years are vulnerable online. This was out of a sample size of 14,499. 

Cybercriminals can take advantage of such vulnerable children and cause financial losses to parents and businesses. That shows how age verification is becoming important to businesses.

Here are more reasons why incorporating an age verification solution to your health business is important.

1. Verification and Smooth Onboarding Process

Healthcare businesses can guarantee customers a smooth onboarding experience with the right age verification process. For example, businesses that legally sell cannabis for health reasons must ensure they sell it only to age-appropriate customers.  

Health businesses are responsible for selling only to individuals above the legal age. So, it’s important for you to know the age of your customer, and an age verification solution will help you do it. 

The verification process involves using data, biometrics, and any documents you deem fit to verify your customer's age. The system lets you confirm that a person behind an account is of age and helps you comply with your industry’s requirements.

2. Reduces Chargeback Cases

An age verification solution helps to limit chargeback cases and a child’s access to parents’ information. For example, children can sometimes access their parent's credit cards or online information and buy age-restricted products.

If a child buys such products without consent, the parent might charge back. A thorough age verification process helps to avoid such situations.

3. Global Verification Regulations

Health ecommerce platforms should know the global age verification requirements. These requirements help protect minors worldwide from accessing content without their parent's consent. 

An ecommerce platform can be accessible to anyone around the world with internet access. That’s why it’s important to know the global verification requirements to protect all children who can access your online business. 

For example, the UK limits underage access through an age verification process found in the digital economy bill. The law restricts content that’s inappropriate for children. 

In America, COPPA (Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act ) determines how businesses collect children’s information and how they process it. This applies to children below 13 years. 

Complying with such regulations requires an efficient age verification solution. Europe also has a GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) that applies to EU state citizens. 

The law provides guidelines for collecting consumer data, including genetic, biometric, and health information. Age consent for collecting such information is between 13 and 16 years.

4. Protects Business Reputation

An age verification system helps you provide a good customer experience and protect your company’s reputation. A thorough verification process shows customers their information is safe, and they can trust your business processes. This builds loyalty, which is crucial for business growth and continuity. 

Such an excellent onboarding experience will turn satisfied customers into brand ambassadors and build your reputation.

5. Avoid Non-Compliance Costs

Noncompliance can attract heavy fines from authorities. All organizations and vendors are required to comply with regulations. 

For example, the GDPR regulations ensure customer information is safe during onboarding. It also protects users’ privacy. Lack of compliance attracts hefty fines of upto 4% of your company’s annual l income.

6. Avoid Financial Losses

Reduce chargeback cases using an age verification solution. When a parent realizes an underage child has bought a product or service without consent, they can chargeback. This can cause financial losses to your business. 

Not complying with regulations also leads to financial losses in the form of fines. It’s possible to avoid such financial losses through age verification. 

Verifying an individual on the other side of your online store ensures you sell the right product to the right person.

7. Account Takeover Fraud

Account takeover is online fraud that can happen if a minor provides payment information to a website. For example, most websites save a customer's details in their database, so customers don’t need to provide payment details each time they want to buy. 

This makes buying easier, but it can also be an opportunity for cybercrime. The age verification process ensures an individual providing information to buy a product is the correct owner of the online account, and their age is appropriate.

8. Corporate Social Responsibility

Corporate social responsibility helps to improve your image and market value among your customers. One way of creating a good business image is ensuring you sell your products and services to age-appropriate audiences. This is possible through the process of age verification. 

Verifying a consumer's age before selling to them ensures children do not consume drugs that can harm their health. This helps to protect children’s health as part of CRS and improve your business image.

9. Eliminates Fake ID Cases

An underage child can use their parent's or sibling’s ID to access medication online. To eliminate such incidences, you need an excellent age verification solution. 

The solution should be something that a clever underage child cannot guess or bypass. For example, minors can make fake IDs or steal an ID to access drugs, but an age verification platform will flag such instances.

10. Reduces Addiction

Children can use documents like prescriptions to access drugs. This can cause drug addiction and other serious conditions. An age verification system helps reduce such addiction cases in children. 

The system ensures medicines are not dispensed to the wrong people. If an individual has a prescription, their age has to be accurately verified before you allow them to buy.

Key Takeaway

An age verification solution helps your business protect the minors from accessing age-restricted goods or services. Verification systems have been evolving, using the latest technology, like artificial intelligence, to ensure accuracy. 

Depending on what is fit for your business, you can use biometrics and documents that will give you the most accurate results. This process protects your customers and keeps your business compliant.