\u201cThe ability to know somebody\u2019s age and try to protect privacy at the same time can be challenging,\u201d says Meta\u2019s Global Head of Safety Antigone Davis. Meta has been\u00a0advocating for app store operators\u00a0<\/a>like Apple and Google to be in charge of verifying users\u2019 ages and soliciting parental consent for app downloads. Now, it\u2019s using its own virtual reality Quest store as a model for how it thinks that should work.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Meta is prompting Quest 2 and 3 users to reenter their birthdays so that it can place accounts in the appropriate age experience as it tries to centralize age verification through its Quest store. Teens aged 13 to 17 will have more privacy settings turned on by default and can be monitored through parental supervision tools. Preteens aged 10 to 12 have even more restrictive settings turned on, with only parents or guardians able to change privacy settings.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Davis told The Verge<\/em> that Meta is trying to solve for age verification challenges with this effort \u201cwhile protecting privacy and access considerations. And you\u2019ll see the same thing in the federal legislation that we\u2019re proposing.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Meta has been investing in its own user age group API<\/a> so that app developers can sort their offerings into different age groups. Meta is asking developers to self-certify which age group (preteens, teens, or adults) their apps are targeted at, and by using the API, Meta can communicate with the app about whether a user is eligible to use it or not.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n It\u2019s similar to what Meta has proposed at the federal level, where it wants to see mobile app store operators like Apple and Google be tasked with verifying users’ ages so that information can be shared with apps used on their devices. That would mean that users wouldn\u2019t need to verify their ages from one app to the next because they\u2019d do it once while setting up their phones.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n If that sounds like Meta passing the buck to other tech companies for age verification, Davis says its work on the Quest store should show that it stands by what it\u2019s advocating for.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWhere we have an app store, we are\u201d taking action, Davis told The Verge<\/em>. \u201cThat\u2019s evidenced by what we\u2019re doing today.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Still, finding the right method for age verification remains a tricky task. Some policymakers have scoffed at using methods like self-proclaimed birthdates to verify age since it\u2019s easy to lie on the app. Davis said Meta will double-check any users who say they\u2019re suddenly in a different age category when they reenter their birthday and require them to verify with an ID or credit card. Meta doesn\u2019t store that information long-term after it completes the process.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThere is no one panacea\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Across different services, Meta has tried an array of age verification methods. For example, it\u2019s used AI face-scanning tool Yoti<\/a> on Facebook Dating and also will occasionally check government IDs, which it stores short-term with encryption. But there\u2019s no perfect solution.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThere is no one panacea,\u201d Davis said. \u201cThat\u2019s why I think you see the industry has struggled a bit to come up with a simple and easy solution.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/div>\n That\u2019s why, according to Davis, the simplest and least privacy-invasive way to do age verification would be when consumers are setting up their phones, especially since it\u2019s a time when kids and teens are likely right next to their parents, increasing the chance of more accurate age information.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n While online safety measures for kids are a hot topic in Congress, there\u2019s limited time to get legislation passed this year. Meanwhile, states, including Florida<\/a>, have moved forward with their own age verification laws, requiring parental consent to use social media for large groups of young teens.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Davis said that\u2019s creating a complicated patchwork for companies to navigate. \u201cWhat you\u2019re finding right now is that some states specify the type and form of age verification, some states don\u2019t specify the type and form of age verification. Some have some idea of accuracy rates that they think should apply; some don\u2019t offer any accuracy rates,\u201d Davis said. \u201cThere\u2019s significant ambiguity in many of the laws, and I think there will be some concerns about liability and risk for all companies with the laws as they currently are.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n