EU Wants to Replace the "I Am 18" Button with Document-Based Age Verification

The European Commission has unveiled a draft law called the KIDS Act, introducing strict new rules to protect children online. Children under 13 will be banned from having their own social media accounts, teenagers aged 13–14 will only be allowed limited profiles under parental supervision, and a full personal account will be available only from age 15.

Social networks and video platforms will be required to verify users' ages when new accounts are created. Companies that fail to comply could face fines of up to 6% of their annual global turnover.

How age verification will work

Under the Commission's plan, users won't need to upload passport data directly to Facebook, Instagram or other private services. A technical solution has already been developed: one option will be a European age-verification system based on biometric ID documents.

Here's how it will work: a person downloads a dedicated app and scans their passport or ID card. The phone reads the data from the document's chip via NFC, after which the front camera compares the user's face with the photo on the document, confirming that a real person — not a fake — is on the other side of the screen.

Besides this method, age can also be verified through e-identification, a banking app, or in person with an authorised service provider.

Personal data stays hidden from platforms

The key feature of the system is that the app doesn't share a user's name, date of birth or any other document details with social networks. The platform only receives one piece of information: whether the user meets the required age threshold.

When using a computer, users can confirm the request by scanning a QR code with their phone; if the same smartphone is used, the request goes straight to the app, and the user simply needs to approve it.

The draft law will now be discussed by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU together with member states, so the final version of the rules may still change.

Source: seznamzpravy.cz