U.S. technology giant Meta Platform said on May 5 that it would extend technical security protection measures for youth accounts to the 27 member states of the European Union and apply them to the Facebook platform in the United States for the first time, in response to outside criticism that it failed to adequately protect minors' online safety.
In recent years, technology companies have faced increasing pressure globally to introduce stricter age verification and safety mechanisms to combat online abuse, youth mental health risks, and the proliferation of artificial intelligence-generated images of child sexual abuse.
Meta launched a technical system last year that can proactively identify accounts it suspects are used by teenagers. Even if these accounts are filled with adult birthdays when registering, they will be included in the scope of youth account protection. The company said in a blog post that the technology will be expanded to the 27 EU countries and will be available on the Facebook platform in the United States for the first time, with Facebook in the UK and EU regions to follow in June.
Meta also disclosed that the company is using more advanced artificial intelligence technology to identify minor accounts, and no longer relies solely on the age information self-reported by users when registering on the platform. Relevant methods include: analyzing the entire user profile and its content through AI, judging whether the account may belong to a minor based on context and behavioral characteristics, and strengthening anti-circumvention measures to prevent users suspected of being minors by Meta from registering new accounts to bypass restrictions.
This initiative is Meta’s latest response to improve the online environment for teenagers and enhance the protection level of minors under regulatory pressure and public opinion doubts.
