Instagram is introducing technology to help verify the age of users in the UK and EU as part of a major safety update. Starting today, anyone who tries to edit their date of birth on Instagram from under 18 to over 18 will be asked to verify their age by either uploading their ID or record a video selfie which will be analysed by independent age estimation technology.
Instagram said the new system would help ensure users were having an age-appropriate experience on the platform. Online safety campaigners have long called for age verification technology to become mandatory online to protect children from inappropriate and potentially harmful content.
Instagram’s age estimation system sees the company working with UK firm Yoti, which specialises in the technology. The two companies said that after a user records their selfie it is shared with Yoti, which uses its technology to analyse facial features and then share an age estimation with Instagram.
