Meta to implement age verification for Instagram
Meta is attempting to detect teenagers who lie about their age
Meta (Parent of Facebook and Instagram) is facing a lawsuit from dozens of state attorneys general alleging the company knowingly hooked kids on social media and helped create a teen mental health crisis. In 2021, former Facebook employee Frances Haugen documents to the media that showed that the company’s own research found Instagram could have a negative mental health impact on teenage girls.
In light of this, Meta has rolled out numerous teen-focused protection features such as banning DMs from strangers and “teen accounts” with greater privacy restrictions. However, Meta is taking it a step further.
Meta plans to begin separating users into over 18 and under 18 using a proprietary “adult classifier” AI tool. It will search through user profiles to see their followers, content, and what kinds of content they engage with. It will even find "happy birthday" posts made by friends. Meta plans to create an appeals process for accounts that are incorrectly classified. This would include uploading a video of yourself, and/or a photo of a driver's license or other identification.
More information about Meta's AI tool can be found here:
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/technology/2024/11/04/instagram-plans-to-use-ai-to-catch-teens-lying-about-age/
https://www.engadget.com/social-media/meta-details-adult-classifier-tool-for-catching-teens-who-lie-about-their-age-on-instagram-164439051.html
https://www.pcmag.com/news/meta-to-use-ai-to-find-kids-lying-about-their-ages-on-instagram