The European Union will introduce a new mobile age verification application in July that will allow users to verify their age without revealing personal information to online platforms. This was reported by UNN with reference to the Financial Times.
Details
The mobile application will be a precursor to the EU's digital wallet, which is scheduled to launch in 2026, and should help to more effectively comply with the rules for the protection of minors on the Internet.
Although the requirement to verify the age for all platforms is not mandatory, resources with content for adults or those serving children are already obliged to take protective measures.
Protecting minors is a very important priority for us, and we will take more measures in this direction
In her opinion, platforms should voluntarily develop a safe design that takes into account the privacy and needs of children, without waiting for government intervention.
Virkkunen also called on technology companies to voluntarily take decisive measures to protect children, and not wait for governments to intervene and leave them under the influence of various regimes around the world.
From the point of view of the platform, it would also be very good if they created a design with a very high level of security, confidentiality and protection for minors
Additionally
The European Commission also seeks to ensure that children's accounts have privacy settings by default.
Investigations are also underway regarding Meta and TikTok due to potentially harmful designs, including "rabbit hole" effects, which may lead to fines.
Many online platforms use a design that is highly addictive. Minors use [these applications, - ed] for hours, they spend the whole day on mobile devices. Of course, this affects their well-being
Separately, the European Commission opened an investigation into four adult sites Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX and XVideos, due to alleged violations of user age verification. This was announced by European Commission spokesman Thomas Renié.
Protecting children online has become a priority topic not only in Europe, but also in the United States. During a trip to Washington, Henna Virkkunen discussed online safety issues with representatives of American companies and officials.
In the USA, as in other countries of the world, the protection of minors is also widely discussed
According to her, there is a common vision between Brussels and Washington in this direction of cooperation.
Let us remind you
The European Union is preparing new rules for using the Internet, which will strengthen the mass restriction of children's use of social networks amid concerns about the consequences of spending too long online.
New TikTok rules: restrictions for teenagers after 10:00 PM13.03.25, 10:24 • [views_13306]