The decades-old Windows-based text editor will soon include new age verification checks to ensure user safety and security.
In a recent blog post Microsoft outlined their plan to introduce age verification to the historic text editing program, Windows Notepad. Citing a need to ensure user safety and protection while using a program that primarily edits plain-text ASCII documents, the post outlines the changes that will need to be made to the app, which will be included in the next major update for Windows 11.
The new version of Notepad will require an active connection to the user’s Microsoft account, a feature which was merely optional in the previous versions. During each launch of the app the user will, with a webcam, be required to submit a complete facial scan, a photo of their driver’s license, and a hand-written letter signed by a notary declaring that the user is over the age of 18.
Many new and innovative features have been added to the ancient Windows utility in recent years.
- Microsoft completely redesigned the user interface in 2021, including a new dark mode to maximize ocular comfort.
- In 2023 they added tabs, considered by Microsoft to be an improvement over managing multiple windows of Windows Notepad.
- In 2025 they added account login (merely optional), Copilot AI integration, as well as a Markdown Parser. It was discovered in 2026 that the markdown parser had an active RCE bug.
Further in the blog post Microsoft emphasised that this latest update is necessary, “to provide safety and security for all users when they are editing their .txt files”.