Instagram to add AI-based feature to detect age-falsifying users

It has been revealed that Instagram is developing an age-guessing tool called the 'adult classifier.' The adult classifier aims to detect underage users, and will use AI to scrutinize users' profiles and posts to classify them as 'over 18 or not.'

Meta Plans to Use AI to Catch Teens Lying About Age on Instagram - Bloomberg
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-11-04/instagram-plans-to-use-ai-to-catch-teens-lying-about-age

Meta, which handles multiple SNS such as Instagram, has been criticized for ' having a negative impact on children's mental health ' and ' inadequate child protection measures ,' and has been sued by the attorneys general of several US states over the impact on children, and has been investigated by the European Commission . Instagram has introduced a system called 'teen accounts' as a measure to protect children, setting limits on the scope of posts and usage time for minor users, but since age verification relies on users' self-declaration, there was a problem that it could not deal with 'minor users who falsely claim to be adults.'

Instagram forces accounts under the age of 16 to be 'private', restricts message sending, and puts accounts into sleep mode between 10 p.m. and 7 p.m. - GIGAZINE

According to Bloomberg, Meta's director of product management for youth and social impact, Alison Hartnett, Instagram is developing an age-guessing tool called an 'adult classifier' to detect 'underage users who are misrepresenting themselves as adults.'

The adult classifier uses AI to scrutinize users' profiles, follower lists, content they interact with, and posts from friends such as 'Happy Birthday' to classify them as 'over 18' or 'under 18.' Accounts classified as 'under 18' are then designated as 'teen accounts,' regardless of their self-reported age.

In addition, adult users who are mistakenly classified as minors can request cancellation from Instagram, but the cancellation request function is currently under development.

Meta claims that by verifying age at the app store rather than on an app-by-app basis, it can protect minors while preserving their privacy.

Parenting in a Digital World Is Hard. Congress Can Make It Easier. | Meta
https://about.fb.com/news/2023/11/online-teen-safety-legislation-is-needed/