TikTok has announced that it will soon introduce new technology to check the ages of its users in Europe, following rising pressure from regulators and lawmakers concerned about the safety of children online. The move is part of an effort to enforce existing age limits and stop children under 13 from using the popular video-sharing app.
The company, owned by Chinese group ByteDance, said the new system is being rolled out across Europe in the coming weeks after a year-long pilot study in the United Kingdom. The technology uses artificial intelligence to examine information from a user’s profile, the videos they post and other behavioural signals to estimate whether an account may belong to someone under the age of 13. If the system detects signs that a user could be underage, the account is not automatically deleted. Instead, it is passed to trained human moderators for further review.
TikTok said the new age-detection tools were developed specifically for Europe in collaboration with Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, which is responsible for enforcing data protection laws across the European Union. The company emphasised that the system is designed to comply with strict European privacy regulations, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). European users will be informed as the technology is introduced.
TikTok already has a minimum user age of 13, but regulators have long criticised the methods currently used to verify ages as inadequate. In some cases, children have been able to create accounts by simply entering a false birth date. The new system aims to reduce this problem by using more sophisticated tools to identify likely underage users.
If an account is flagged as potentially underage and TikTok decides to remove it, users will be able to appeal the decision. Methods for proving age during an appeal could include using facial age-estimation technology provided by a third party called Yoti, credit card verification or submitting an official government-issued identity document. Meta, the parent company of Facebook, also uses Yoti for age verification on its platforms.
The introduction of stronger age checks comes at a time of heightened scrutiny of social media platforms across Europe and beyond. European authorities are concerned that current age-verification systems are either too weak or overly invasive. Some countries are exploring even stricter rules. For example, the European Parliament has supported proposals to set higher age limits for certain platforms, and Denmark has proposed banning social media use for children under 15. Australia has already banned under-16s from some social platforms.
TikTok’s announcement also follows legal and regulatory challenges related to child safety and content moderation. In the United States, for example, the company is facing a lawsuit brought by the parents of children who died after attempting dangerous viral challenges. TikTok has stated that it prohibits content that promotes harmful behaviour.
Despite these efforts, TikTok acknowledged that there is currently no globally accepted way to verify a user’s age while fully protecting privacy. The company said that it will continue to develop and refine its methods in response to regulatory requirements and user feedback.
Author:Oje.Ese