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Meta will start using AI to scan photos and videos for visual clues to see if a user is under 13 and should be removed from Facebook and Instagram, the company announced<\/a> on Tuesday. These visual clues include a person\u2019s height or bone structure, it said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to be clear: this is not facial recognition,\u201d Meta explained in its blog post. \u201cOur AI looks at general themes and visual cues, for example height or bone structure, to estimate someone\u2019s general age; it does not identify the specific person in the image. By combining these visual insights with our analysis of text and interactions, we can significantly increase the number of underage accounts we identify and remove.<\/p>\n The visual analysis system is now operating in select countries, but Meta says it\u2019s working toward a broader rollout. <\/p>\n Meta says this system is part of its efforts to keep kids under 13 off its platforms. These efforts include using AI to analyze entire profiles for contextual clues, such as birthday celebrations or mentions of school grades. The company looks for these signals across different formats, such as posts, comments, bios, captions, and more. Meta plans to expand this technology to more parts of its apps, including Instagram Live and Facebook Groups, in the future. <\/p>\n If Meta determines that a person may be underage, it will deactivate their account, and the user will need to prove their age using the company\u2019s age verification process in order to prevent their account from being deleted.<\/p>\n The announcement comes weeks after a New Mexico jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million<\/a> in civil penalties for misleading consumers about the safety of its platforms and putting children at risk. The company was also ordered to implement fundamental changes to its platforms. Meta has since threatened to shut down its social media services<\/a> in the state.<\/p>\n It\u2019s worth noting that this case is\u00a0one of many<\/a>\u00a0lawsuits that Meta and other Big Tech companies are facing over child safety.\u00a0<\/p>\n Techcrunch event<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSan Francisco, CA<\/span> Meta also announced on Tuesday that it\u2019s expanding its technology that automatically places teens into stricter \u201cTeen Accounts\u201d<\/a> on Instagram to 27 countries in the EU and Brazil. These teen accounts place users into a stricter account experience with additional safeguards, such as receiving DMs only from people they follow or are already connected to, hiding harmful comments, and setting accounts to private by default.<\/p>\n Additionally, Meta said it\u2019s expanding the technology to Facebook in the U.S. for the first time, followed by the U.K. and EU in June. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission<\/a>. This doesn\u2019t affect our editorial independence.<\/em><\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOctober 13-15, 2026<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n