Instagram To Adopt AI And Video Selfies In Age Verification

The popular social media platform, Instagram, is planning to introduce artificial intelligence (AI) and video selfies to verify its users’ age. The new development comes from renewed calls for social media platforms to limit underage users from accessing their sites.

However, the new age verification method is still in its testing phase. According to the Instagram team, users must upload a video selfie of themselves. Then the AI technology will take over and verify the user’s age.

In addition, when a user wants to edit their birth date on the platform, an age verification using AI will also be done on such users.

Furthermore, there are several ways that users can verify their ages aside from video selfies. Users can also upload their ID or request three of their mutual friends to help verify their age.

Interestingly, as revealed by insiders, video uploads make the age verification process exciting. After uploading the video, Instagram will forward it to the AI firm, Yoti, for verification.

Instagram to Utilize AI Algorithm for Age Verification

The social media giant plans to use Yoti’s AI algorithm to verify users’ age on its platform. The AI algorithm can tell whether a user is 18 years old or below.

Moreover, Yoti designed its AI to use people’s images and data with their permission anonymously. However, users are at liberty to direct the AI algorithm to delete their data anytime.

Meanwhile, the AI firm collects data from users under 18 with the consent of their parents or guardians.

Commenting on the accuracy of the age delivered by the AI algorithm, Yoti noted its accuracy rate is 2.96 years for the age group of 6 to 70 years. According to Yoti, the narrower the age group, the greater the accuracy.

A Data Breach is Likely

Despite the data privacy policy employed by Instagram and the AI firm, Yoti, data misuse is likely to happen given the conditions. Even Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has fallen to the antics of hackers.

However, Instagram disclosed that once a video is uploaded and transferred to Yoti, the company does not use the image for anything. And once a user’s age has been confirmed, the image is automatically deleted.

According to Instagram, knowing users’ real age online is complicated and challenging for all social media platforms. Amid the growing calls to limit the age of users on social media, Instagram noted that this is the only method it can use to achieve its aim.

The number of teen users without ID is growing, and the social media giant revealed that it is forced to improvise using AI to verify users’ age.

Over the years, there has been a rising number of underage users on the video-streaming social media platform, calling for urgent action.

Moreover, Instagram hopes to use this new technology to deal with the prevalence of fake and multiple accounts the platform is struggling to control.