---
title: "The European Union has explicitly stated that the new verification system cannot be bypassed via VPN."
claim_id: "5dcawnVJy4B5urx4cTGW"
validity: 5
model: accounts/fireworks/models/kimi-k2p6
---

# Claim: The European Union has explicitly stated that the new verification system cannot be bypassed via VPN.

Verdict: 5%
Model: Kimi K2.6
Checked on: 06/07/2026

## Verdict explanation

Here is my analysis of the claim:

**Reasoning:**

- The European Union has **not** stated that the verification system cannot be bypassed via VPN. In fact, EU officials have acknowledged the opposite—that VPNs **can** bypass the system[^1][^2].
- European Commission Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen explicitly stated at a press conference that users could circumvent the system through VPNs and suggested that preventing such workarounds might be a "next step" for future examination[^1].
- When asked directly about preventing VPN bypasses, Virkkunen acknowledged that "no technology is foolproof"[^2].
- Her office later clarified that the objective is to make safeguards "more difficult to bypass—not to prohibit VPNs" and that there is "absolutely no crackdown on VPNs"[^2].
- An EU Parliamentary Research Service briefing noted that current age assurance measures "are relatively easy for minors to bypass" and identified VPNs as a "loophole" in existing child-protection legislation[^3][^1].
- The claim appears to invert or misrepresent the EU's actual position, which recognizes VPNs as a viable workaround that may need to be addressed in future policy, not a technical impossibility[^2].

**Overall validity**: 5%

[^1]:
    [European Parliament think-tank suggests VPN crackdown amid online age-verification push](https://brusselssignal.eu/2026/05/european-parliament-think-tank-suggests-vpn-crackdown-amid-online-age-verification-push)

[^2]:
    [Fact check: Is the EU about to restrict the use of VPNs? | Euronews](https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2026/05/15/fact-check-is-the-eu-about-to-restrict-the-use-of-vpns)

[^3]:
    [Virtual private networks and the protection of children online](https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/ATAG/2026/782618/EPRS_ATA\(2026\)782618_EN.pdf)

## Sources using this claim (1)

- [🚨🇪🇺BREAKING: The EU has announced that every citizen will soon require a digital passport t…](/source/x:basilthegreat:2074101417749409833) — 5% — 24 views