Tech controls knife sales

John Lewis has introduced new technology to control the sale of knives online ensuring those under the age of 18 can’t make purchases.

People buying online must consent to have their age checked by a programme called YOTI which has been specially trained to be able to verify the age of a user with plus or minus 12 months accuracy. John Lewis declines to sell knives to anyone under the age of 19 to address the accuracy issue. The programme can even use anti-spoofing software to avoid people using a photo of an older person to fool the software.