Meta Expands AI-Based Age Determination Technology for Instagram Worldwide
Meta is expanding its AI-based age assessment technology on Instagram globally: it is designed to detect teen accounts even when an adult birth date is provided and enable Teen Account protections for them.
Meta has announced a global expansion of its age assessment technology on Instagram. The company uses AI to identify users it believes are teenagers, even if they provided an adult birth date during registration. According to Meta, this will allow millions more teenagers to access built-in Teen Account restrictions.
Such accounts automatically limit the circle of people who can contact the teenager, the available content, and time spent in the app. Specifically, users receive messages only from those they follow or are already connected with, and potentially harmful comments are hidden; accounts are private by default.
To assess age, Meta analyzes profile context: mentions of birthdays, school grades, and other signals in posts, comments, bios, and captions. The company also considers visual cues in photos and videos, including height and bone structure.
Meta continues to implement this technology on Facebook and plans a similar global rollout on Threads later this year. In the U.S., parents will begin seeing videos in their Instagram feeds this month explaining the company’s approach to age restrictions.
The expansion is linked to Meta’s agreement with 52 attorneys general from U.S. states, territories, and the District of Columbia. Under this agreement, the company is enhancing tools to detect accounts that may belong to children under 13, as well as to find users aged 13 to 17 who provided an adult birth date.
