Meta✴ has announced the global expansion of its AI technology designed to identify teens on Instagram✴ who provided false age information upon registration. According to the company, the new rollout will automatically move "millions of teens" worldwide into the protected "Teen Accounts" category. Previously, similar AI-powered tools operated only in the US, European Union countries, and Brazil. Thus, the age verification system is becoming truly worldwide, covering markets where it was previously absent.
How AI Determines User Age
The mechanism for recognizing underage users is based on a comprehensive analysis of multiple behavioral and visual factors. The system tracks which profiles and content a specific account interacts with, what birthday wishes it receives from other users, and analyzes "common themes and visual cues" in uploaded photos and videos. Parameters factored in by the algorithm include a person's height and skeletal structure features visible in pictures. Additionally, in Australia, Meta✴ has started utilizing age range data provided by Apple, expanding verification tools beyond its own services. If the system determines that a user is presumably under 13 — the minimum age to create an account on Meta✴ services — such an account is removed from Instagram✴.
What "Teen Accounts" Are and How They Work
For users aged 13 to 17, stricter settings for "Teen Accounts" are activated automatically — even if they entered a birthdate corresponding to an adult during registration. By default, these accounts are private: strangers cannot find them, access to certain content is restricted, and unfamiliar people are prohibited from sending direct messages to teens. Users aged 16 and younger cannot independently change these account settings without permission from parents or guardians. Parents, in turn, receive control tools: they can set time limits on Instagram✴ usage and monitor how their child uses the platform. Starting next month, parents in the US will begin receiving notifications in Instagram✴ explaining how the age estimation system works and how to ensure a teen's age is entered correctly on the platform.
A $17.1 Billion Lawsuit as a Trigger for Change
The global expansion of the AI age verification system is a direct consequence of a settlement in a lawsuit where Meta✴ committed to strengthening age verification measures and imposing stricter restrictions on teens. The settlement totaled $17.1 billion — one of the largest lawsuits in the history of the tech industry. This very decision served as a catalyst for scaling tools that previously operated in only a limited number of jurisdictions. Now, the company is forced to demonstrate that the promised measures are being implemented globally rather than just formally.
Additional Measures: Combatting AI Influencers
Concurrently with the launch of the global age verification system, Instagram✴ has stepped up efforts to combat fake influencer accounts created using artificial intelligence. The social network will limit the reach of such profiles unless they explicitly state they were created using AI. The label "created with AI" is being renamed to "profile created with AI" to clearly convey to users that the profile image is the result of AI generation rather than a photograph of a real person. These steps complement Meta✴'s overall strategy to increase platform transparency and safety.
It is worth noting that Meta✴ and Instagram✴ are included in the registry of public associations and religious organizations whose activities have been liquidated or banned by court decisions under relevant anti-extremism laws.
