Kid with fake mustache tricked online age verification tool

Meta beef up to her Age verification mechanisms With an artificial intelligence system that analyzes images and videos Instagram and Facebook For “visual cues,” such as height and bone structure, to identify and delete accounts of users under the age of 13. The company announced this step amid a wave of cases in which hundreds of children were able to evade restrictions on access to social networks, even through simple tricks such as drawing a mustache.

The new approach is part of a series of measures adopted as part of an AI-based security strategy designed to correct the limitations of traditional methods, which rely heavily on self-reported age. With this change, the company seeks to reduce the ease with which minors access platforms that are theoretically limited to them.

In a press releaseMeta explained that it implements several tools to identify contextual indicators that allow a person’s age to be estimated. This process involves analyzing posts, comments, biographies and descriptions, paying special attention to references related to school years or birthday celebrations – elements that can provide clues about the real age of the person running the account.

These tools are in addition to automated analysis techniques aimed at detecting physical traits from images shared on Meta social platforms. These include characteristics such as height and bone structure. Meta is careful to stipulate that this system does not recognize faces, as it does not seek to identify specific individuals in photos or video clips. Instead, the company notes, “By combining these visual insights with our analysis of text and interactions, we can dramatically increase the number of underage accounts we identify and remove.”

If Meta suspects, based on these elements, that an account is operated by a child under 13, it will be suspended. The user will have to re-verify his or her age using procedures established by the Company to regain access; Otherwise, the profile will be permanently deleted.

Meta also announced that it will expand its technology to automatically detect users between the ages of 13 and 15 and assign them teen accounts. This type of profile has content restrictions and parental controls enabled by default, with the goal of providing a safer environment for this age group.

Meta began implementing age verification technology in 2024 for Instagram users in the United States, Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Now, the mechanism will be expanded to include Instagram accounts in Brazil and 27 countries in the European Union. Additionally, these practices will be applied for the first time to Facebook users in the United States, with plans to expand to the European Union and the United Kingdom next month.

I’m looking for all adults

The new measures were interpreted as a response to A Initial ruling Recently issued by the European Commission, which concluded that the Mark Zuckerberg-led company was in violation of the Digital Services Act by allegedly failing to effectively prevent children under the age of 13 from using its platforms. The EU body found that the company lacked sufficiently effective mechanisms to prevent such access and that its current systems for identifying and suspending accounts below the minimum age were inadequate.

These criticisms are supported by the results of a survey conducted by the non-profit organization Internet Matters. After surveying nearly 1,300 children and their parents in the UK, the study revealed that nearly a third of children had successfully evaded government restrictions on access to social networking sites. In some cases, the methods used are particularly striking.

The report is entitled “Internet Safety Act: Are Children Safe on the Internet?“It showed that 46 per cent of children aged between 9 and 16 thought it was very easy to circumvent age controls. However, overall, only 32 per cent admitted to breaking the rules.