Age and ID checks What an agency has to do before it works with a creator

An agency that works with creators has to check that each one is 18 or older before it starts. On Crewvale this is a rule: every agency commits to checking every creator’s ID and age, and Crewvale does not do the check for it. This guide is for agencies. It covers when to ask, what to collect, how to keep it safe and what the laws behind it say.

In short

• Every agency on Crewvale commits to checking each creator’s ID and age before working with them. It can’t submit its profile for review without that commitment.
• Crewvale does not verify ID or age. Creators confirm they are 18 or older with a checkbox, and the check itself is between the agency and the creator.
• Ask only after the creator has accepted an introduction and before any agreement. Never in a first message, and never over a chat app on a personal phone.
• Collect the least you need, say what it is for, keep it in one controlled place and delete it on a schedule you can state.
• The laws on age checks fall mainly on platforms, but an agency that holds IDs takes on the data-protection duty and the security risk.

What does Crewvale require of an agency?

Every agency has to commit to checking every creator’s ID and age before working with them. That commitment is stored on the agency’s profile and is required to submit it for review. The Crewvale team reviews the agency’s six published terms and this commitment before the agency is listed.

Crewvale does not check IDs or ages itself, and it never sees or stores the documents. Creators confirm they are 18 or older with a required checkbox, and agencies can only find creators who have confirmed it. That is a self-declaration, not a check, so it does not replace yours. Crewvale never shows an 18+ or identity badge for a creator.

An agency can ask for a creator’s ID only after the creator has accepted an introduction, and it does so before any agreement. That order protects the creator and protects you.

When should you ask for ID?

At the right moment, in a channel you control.

1. The creator accepts your introduction. Until then you see an anonymous summary only.
2. You explain what you will check, why, where the copy will be kept and when it will be deleted.
3. You run the check before you sign an agreement and before you take any login or start work on the creator’s accounts.
4. You record that the check was done, not more than you need to prove it.

Don’t ask in a first message, and don’t ask on a chat app on someone’s personal phone. Fake agencies and fake job ads collect documents, so a creator who is asked too early has good reason to say no. Never ask for account logins before a signed agreement either.

What should the check cover, and what should you keep?

The goal is simple: a document that shows the person is an adult, matched to the person you are talking to. Ask for the least that does it.

• Check the date of birth against the document. If you only need to see the birth date, ask whether you need the document number or a copy at all.
• Match the document to the person, for example with a live check on a video call, rather than keeping a selfie with the document.
• Keep a record of who checked, when and with what result. You rarely need to keep the image itself once the check is done.
• If you do keep a copy, store it in one access-controlled place, limit who can open it and write down for how long.

Each copy of an ID is a data-protection duty and a security risk. An agency may also hold bank details and legal names, so treat the whole set with the same care.

How do you delete what you hold?

Say when you will delete it before you collect it, and keep to it. A creator can ask you in writing to delete their data. In the EU, Article 17 of the GDPR sets out when a person can ask for erasure, with exceptions such as establishing, exercising or defending legal claims. Rules elsewhere differ, so check the rules where you operate, answer in writing and keep the reply.

Have a named person a creator can contact about their data. When a creator leaves, delete what you no longer need and tell them you have.

Why are age checks becoming law?

Lawmakers want to stop children from reaching adult material. Ticking a box that says you are over 18 is widely seen as too weak, so newer laws ask for a check that works, such as a document check or an age estimate from a face scan. The texts differ by country, so read them as examples of one direction, not as a single rule.

In the UK, the Online Safety Act 2023 requires providers that publish pornographic content to use age verification or age estimation, or both, so that children are not normally able to encounter it, and the checks must be “highly effective” (section 81). Services that host user content must have proportionate systems to prevent children from encountering the most harmful kinds of content, unless their terms ban it for every user (section 12).

In the US, the Supreme Court upheld a Texas law, H.B. 1181, in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton on 27 June 2025, by six votes to three. It applies to commercial websites where more than one-third of the content is sexual material harmful to minors and requires reasonable age verification, by government-issued ID or a commercially reasonable method that relies on transactional data. That is one state’s law and one ruling. Other states have their own.

In the EU, the Commission published guidelines on 14 July 2025 under Article 28(1) of the Digital Services Act. They recommend age verification to restrict access to adult content and say methods should be accurate, reliable, robust, non-intrusive and non-discriminatory. They are not binding.

These laws are aimed at platforms, not at agencies or creators. They shape what a platform asks of fans, and sometimes of creators, and they raise the stakes for anyone who handles identity documents.

Can an age check protect privacy?

Yes. The French data protection authority, the CNIL, describes a model in which the site learns that a visitor is an adult but not who they are, and the provider of the proof of age knows the person but not which site they visit. Not every platform works this way. Think about the same principle in your own process: learn only what you need, from as few people as possible.

What will creators ask you?

Expect these questions, and answer them before they are asked.

• What is the document for, who sees it, where is it stored and when is it deleted?
• Is it sent through a channel the company controls?
• Who is the contact for my data?
• Will it be used for anything else, such as opening accounts in my name? (It must not be.)

A creator who gets clear answers can trust the process. One who doesn’t should walk away, and Crewvale’s contract checklist lists the same signs.

How does this work on Crewvale?

Crewvale is a free marketplace for the OnlyFans and webcam industry: creators and cam models compare OnlyFans and webcam agencies on their published terms, agencies meet creators looking for representation, and agencies hire staff on its jobs board. Crewvale is not an agency and doesn’t handle payments.

Agencies on Crewvale are reviewed by hand as businesses and commit to checking every creator’s ID and age before working with them. Verification of an agency is optional; the commitment is not. If an agency does not check, a creator can tell the Crewvale team, which reviews every report. No agency can pay to rank higher.

Read the standards every agency meets, the verification page, or how to stay safe on Crewvale. For account takeover risks, see our guide to account security with an agency.

Sources

Online Safety Act 2023, section 81 and section 12 (legislation.gov.uk). Free Speech Coalition, Inc. v. Paxton, No. 23-1122, US Supreme Court, 27 June 2025. European Commission, guidelines on the protection of minors under the Digital Services Act, 14 July 2025. CNIL, “Online age verification: balancing privacy and the protection of minors”. GDPR Article 17. The laws were read on 25 October 2026; Crewvale’s standards on 8 November 2026.

Last reviewed: 8 November 2026.