The UK government is considering implementing mandatory age verification for all social media users, including adults, as part of a potential ban on under-16s accessing platforms like TikTok and Instagram. Ministers are exploring the "strongest possible approach" to online safety, which could require every existing UK social media user to verify their age online.
Consultation on Age Verification Measures
A consultation published by the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology asks the public whether they agree that "adults should complete age checks more often, if it means children are safer online." If adopted, this could make the UK's online safety regime more stringent than Australia's system, where firms can require facial scans to determine if users are 16 or older.
Technological Challenges and Criticisms
The government report acknowledges that current technology struggles to distinguish between a 14-year-old and a 16-year-old, with reports of children tricking apps by contorting their faces to appear older. Critics argue there is no reliable way to keep children off social media without requiring ID checks on adults too.
Silkie Carlo, Director of civil liberties group Big Brother Watch, warned: "The only way to ban children from social media is through mandatory online ID checks for us all, adults and children alike. The government would have to choose between mandatory ID checks, biometric age guesstimates or AI behavioural surveillance to estimate internet users' ages."
She added that all online age verification options are "highly invasive" and biometric and behavioural profiling methods are "highly inaccurate," meaning IDs would be required in millions of cases regardless.
Alternative Measures Under Consideration
Sources stress that no decision has been made, with options short of a ban also on the table. These include overnight curfews, restrictions on addictive app features, or "nudges" encouraging users to take breaks. The consultation aims to prepare children for rapid technological change.
However, ministers face pressure from MPs to impose a ban on under-16s using social media rather than just recommending curfews. Daniel Kebede, General Secretary of the National Education Union, stated: "Children are not just being harmed because they are online too late at night – they are being harmed because algorithms are designed to push them towards the most shocking, violent and sexual content from the moment they log on."
Carlo urged Parliament to reject calls for a social media ban and instead focus on supporting parents and schools to help children use the internet positively and healthily.
