> does the law require one to take statements made by a person on the Internet at face value if they seem patently false? [IAAL but this is not legal advice.

> does the law require one to take statements made by a person on the Internet at face value if they seem patently false? [IAAL but this is not legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction if you need legal advice.] For the purpose of COPPA, the standard is "actual knowledge." Under that standard, if you have an honest and reasonable belief that a claim is untrue, you can discard that claim. If, on the other hand, your belief is unreasonable under the circumstances, or you just ignore all self-reported ages and assume they're all false, then you could be liable. For the purpose of the law at issue in the sex crime case in Washington state, I do not know what the standard of knowledge is (but it's almost certainly lower than actual knowledge, given the outcome). The instructions given to the jury were not reported.