Meta AI will analyze faces of teen users ‘but it’s not face recognition’

Source: 9to5Mac

Meta’s latest attempt to comply with age‑verification requirements in Europe, Brazil, and the United States is to roll out AI‑powered technology that analyses the faces of teenage users of Facebook and Instagram.

Age‑verification requirements

Regulators around the world are demanding that social‑media platforms get far better at identifying and blocking users under the age of 13. In addition, teenagers aged 13‑18 must be provided with age‑appropriate feeds.

Existing AI age detection

The social‑media network already uses AI to pick up clues about a user’s age. This includes analyzing entire profiles for contextual signals—such as birthday celebrations or mentions of school grades—to determine if an account likely belongs to someone underage. Signals are examined across posts, comments, bios, captions, and are being expanded to Instagram Reels, Instagram Live, and Facebook Groups.

New visual analysis of faces

Meta announced that it is now adding visual analysis of users’ faces. According to the company:

“This technology allows our AI to scan photos and videos for visual clues about a person’s age that text might miss. We want to be clear: this is not facial recognition. Our AI looks at general themes and visual cues—such as height or bone structure—to estimate someone’s general age; it does not identify the specific person in the image.”

The announcement can be read in full here.

Call for app‑store responsibility

Meta has renewed its call for legal responsibility for age verification to be placed on app stores rather than on individual developers. The company argues that legislation should require app stores to verify age and provide that information to apps and developers so they can deliver age‑appropriate experiences, such as Teen Accounts.

Public support

Meta claims that 88 % of U.S. parents support this approach.