©Budi Gustaman via Unsplash
By the end of this year, the European Commission would like to see all of its member states using the EU age verification app to help children surf more safely online. That's the advice since, according to Europe, Meta is breaking European law by not doing more to keep young children off its platforms.
The European Commission's app scans the user's ID proof once, recording only age. This EU age verification app thus ensures that people indicate on whether they are old enough to visit sites and social media platforms. The technology to build such an app is ready and European countries and companies can now use it to build their own age verification app. The main goal is to better protect children online. After all, the existing systems and age checks appear to be easy to circumvent. The European Commission wants to better shield children from harmful content and make platforms less dependent on weak or easily circumvented age checks.
On Wednesday morning, the European Commission concluded from research that Meta is failing to enforce its own minimum age of 13. Indeed, according to Brussels, some 10 to 12 percent of European children under 13 have accounts on Facebook or Instagram. In doing so, Meta is violating European law. According to the European Commission, minors can simply enter a false date of birth and there are no effective controls in place to counter that. Consequently, the European Commission feels compelled to act on its own in an effort to offer children a safer browsing experience.
©Budi Gustaman via Unsplash