EU’s age verification tool ready for use
The EU’s age verification tool for accessing social media platforms and networks is now available to member states. Countries can adapt and roll it out at national level.
The Commission developed the tool based on the model of its Covid-19 app during the pandemic. Users can download it and customise it using their passport or identity card. This will allow them to prove their age to online platforms without having to submit their personal data or identity documents directly.
Adoption of the tool is not mandatory but recommended. It can be operated independently and is also designed to be integrated into the European digital identity wallets that member states are required to provide to their citizens by the end of the year. Telecommunications ministers are due to discuss the issue at an informal meeting in Cyprus on Thursday.
There are growing concerns in Europe regarding the use of social media and digital platforms by young people, with some countries introducing legislation to ban access below a certain age.
To function properly, age verification must go hand in hand with strict enforcement of the European Digital Services Act, Commission vice president Henna Virkkunen said. A Commission investigation has reached a preliminary conclusion that Instagram and Facebook breached the act by failing to prevent children under the age of 13 from accessing their services.
The investigation found that around 12 per cent of children under the age of 13 accessed the platforms, putting them at risk of cyberbullying, grooming or exposure to inappropriate content.
"Our preliminary findings show that Meta is doing very little to prevent children below this age from accessing these platforms"
“Meta’s own terms and rules indicate that Instagram and Facebook are not meant for minors under 13,” Virkkunen said. “Yet, our preliminary findings show that Meta is doing very little to prevent children below this age from accessing these platforms.”
The company now has the opportunity to respond to the allegations and may implement changes to its policy. If the Commission’s findings are confirmed, the company could face a fine of up to 6 per cent of its total global annual turnover.
Age verification in Australia, which has banned social media for under-16s © PHOTO SAEED KHAN / AFP
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