Instagram Is Testing Age Verification For Teenagers Below 18

Image: Brytfmonline

To prevent age change from under 18 to 18 or above, the social media and video sharing giant Instagram has developed an age verification feature to help ascertain the real ages of teens. The feature is currently undergoing testing in the US. After rolling out the feature, teens who attempt to edit their age to at least 18 would be asked to ascertain their age by uploading a photo ID, recording a video selfie or asking a mutual friend(s) to establish their age.

According to Instagram on Thursday, the measure was because teens and adults are on the network with varying user experiences. This Meta subsidiary said further that it was sending video selfies to Yoti, a London-based company. Yoti uses artificial intelligence to estimate age based on facial features. The company started in 2014 by developing a free consumer app that put people’s IDs on their phones. Their apps take privacy to the roof offering users safety of their personal details.

As of now, the company has well over 11 million app downloads globally. They have now extended to offer business solutions that include identity verification, age estimation etc. The Yoti technology cannot recognize any other identity but age. However, the news is that Meta and Yoti will delete video selfies for age verification once the age is established.

In a press release, Meta recognized that understanding people's ages online was a complex, industry-wide challenge. Therefore, they promised to collaborate with stakeholders in the industry to set clear standards for online verification of age. They further said that many people, such as teens, lack access to forms of ID that make age verification clear and simple. They, therefore, affirmed that they have to explore innovative methods to tackle the predicament of verifying users' age when they don't have an ID.

The age verification comes because of the concerns of parents and lawmakers in the US regarding linking the use of the platform to mental health issues of young users. Instagram has been criticized in the past because studies revealed that the mental health of young users is directly connected to the use of the platform. Hence, the stricter age check was the response of the company. The social media giant once rolled out Family Center to give parents control over the use of the platform by their wards. 

Family Center was launched on March 16, 2022, as parental control feature set to help tackle the growing challenges around teen safety and mental health. It is one of the many tools of parental control to help parents guide their kids' activities on the network. Family Center was first rolled out in the US and will be available globally soon.

In 2019, Instagram started requiring users to provide their age when registering, and currently, the minimum age requirement to sign up is 13 years. However, depending on the jurisdiction, the age limit can be higher. Furthermore, Instagram requires that an account that represents users below the age of 13 must clearly state in the bio that it is managed to be a parent or manager. The company also gives room for the user to report accounts owned by users below 13, and their response will be deleting such accounts.

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#Instagram
#Meta
#Social Media