How the EU's Age-Verification App for Children Would Work
The plan uses a Commission-built age-verification app that returns only a yes-or-no response and could cover 450 million people across 27 countries.
- On Thursday, the European Commission proposed banning children under 13 from social media, with parent-supervised accounts permitted until age 15.
- Enforcement relies on a free, open-source age verification app Brussels built that tells platforms whether users meet age thresholds without revealing identity. Minister Oscar Lopez emphasized that age systems must "strike a balance with the right to privacy."
- Under the proposed Kids Act, platforms face penalties reaching up to 6% of global turnover for non-compliance. The restriction would cover 450 million people across 27 countries, with EU-wide availability expected by the end of 2026.
- Legal hurdles persist as France's Constitutional Council blocked a national under-15 ban last month, deeming it an unconstitutional infringement on freedom of expression. Greece, however, expects "clear convergence" with its own legislative approach.
- The proposal requires approval from member states and the European Parliament before becoming law. Currently, it is being rolled out through seven pilot countries: Cyprus, Denmark, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, and Spain.
20 Articles
20 Articles
On Thursday, the European Commission proposed banning access to social networks for children under 13 years of age, with accounts supervised by parents up to the age of 15 years, to be based on an instrument built by Brussels: a free, open-source, age-verification application that informs a platform if a user meets a certain age threshold, without disclosing his/her identity, transmits Reuters which will publish on Friday an information material…
Sapo
SIC NotíciasHow can we prove that we are old enough to enter a social network without revealing who we are? That is precisely the challenge that the European Commission wants to solve with a new application of age verification, at a time when Brussels proposed to ban access to social networks for children under 13 years of age.
European age-verification app for children: What is it, how does it work & how does it differ from Australia? Explained
The European Commission proposed prohibiting children under 13 from using social media, while allowing those aged 13 to 15 to access platforms through accounts supervised by their parents. ‘Online platforms can easily rely on our age verification app,’ Ursula von der Leyen said.
Explainer: How the EU's age-verification app for children would work
Chay Bowes: Von der Leyen says the EU will protect children online with "safety by design" and a new age verification app
Von der Leyen says the EU will protect children online with "safety by design" and a new age verification app.Don't be fooled. Soon every platform will need your ID regardless of age, and Brussels gets to decide which apps are "certified".They are...
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