The "Age verification" is simply an excuse to add tracking on system software. Very soon they are going to do the same to hardware too, I guess, so it is going to be very hard to find hardware that is truly safe from tampering.

And modern hardware is so complex that it is impossible for individuals to build one by their own. We are no longer in the 8-bit/16-bit era. And considering the power of AI -- individuals pretty much mean nothing to the elites.

I have never thought the Dystopian future to be so close -- I always thought it would be X years away. But legislation, the lawyers, are definitely very efficient on this kind of things.