IG adds new age verification features

Amid last week's updates to teen and parental controls on the platform, Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri announced new age verification updates that don't include the traditional ID method.

According to Mosseri in the reel, in the U.S., when you’re changing your age from under 18 to 18 and over, you’ll be prompted to select one of the options which now include:

• Traditional ID upload

• Social vouching which will allow users to choose 3 out of 6 pre-chosen followers over the age of 18 with mutual friends and "various other criteria" to confirm your age.'

Beware: Recent scams claiming to need a verification have proactively targeted users on Instagram prior to this announcement. DO NOT give your login information or other forms of contact information out. Instagram's age verification will likely not require this.

• Face-based age prediction a age based prediction created based on a selfie video submitted in partnership with Yoti, a global digital identity and biometric company that prides itself on its "privacy-first approach to age verification"

These new verification methods were added in recognition of access differences to traditional IDs worldwide. Mosseri emphasized these new methods would not include any facial recognition technology, which comes

at no surprise after recent lawsuits against Instagram for using facial recognition in its selfie filters.

"I want to be clear there is no facial recognition. There is not way to tell your identity... We want to make sure we're doing our utmost to respects people's privacy" - Mosseri

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