Facebook Working On Artificial Intelligence And New Methods To Identify Under Age 13 Users

Noting that identifying and removing accounts belonging to children under the age of 13 is extremely challenging, Facebook has stated that it is investigating ways to persuade children under the age of 13 not to lie about their age, as well as using the artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

Because Facebook and Instagram were never intended for children under the age of 13, the company is now devising new methods to prevent minors from joining the said platforms.

"We're working on artificial intelligence (AI) to detect and remove underage accounts, as well as new ways to verify people's ages. We're also creating new experiences tailored to children under the age of 13 "said Pavni Diwanji, Facebook's VP of Youth Products.

Facebook is also collaborating with operating system (OS) providers, web browsers, and other service providers to share data that will aid apps in determining whether a user is of proper age.

"Many argue that collecting ID is the solution to this industry problem," the company said. "However, there are significant limitations to this approach: many young people don't have an ID, ID collection isn't a fair or equitable solution, and it isn't foolproof."

It was stated that access to government IDs, as well as the information contained in an ID, such as a birthday, differs according to where you reside in the globe.

"Some people have access to IDs, but they don't get them unless they travel, and others can't afford one. In fact, underserved communities around the world, particularly young women, face significant troubles from a lack of identification," Facebook explained.

People are currently prompted for their birthday when they open Facebook apps to create an account. This is referred to as an age screen.

However, determining someone's age is not as straightforward as it may appear. Even when age screens are prevalent in our industry, youngsters can — and frequently do — get around them by lying about their age.

"Because there's no foolproof way to prevent people from misrepresenting their age online," Diwanji said in a statement, "we want to build experiences tailored to them, managed by parents and guardians."

Tweens will have access to a new Instagram experience as a result.

"We believe that encouraging them to use an age-appropriate experience managed by parents is the best course of action. It will take a village to make this experience compelling enough for this age group to want to use it, but we are determined to get it right," the company asserted.

Facebook has constructed technology that enables it to assess people's ages, such as whether they are under or over the age of 18.

"People wishing you a happy birthday and the age written in those messages are examples of things we look at. We also take your Facebook age and apply it to our other apps where you've linked your accounts, and vice versa. So if you tell us your birthday on Facebook, we'll use it for your Instagram account as well." Diwanji elaborated.

The social media platform stated that it is concentrating on incorporating existing data into its artificial intelligence technology.

"We're developing a menu of options for someone to prove their age where we feel we need more information. This is a work in progress, and we'll have more information to share as it becomes available," Facebook stated.