Starting August 13, YouTube will use the age and activity of an account to determine whether it belongs to a minor. In this case, the age of the account is determined by the time that has passed since its creation, while the activity is obviously understood as the history of views.
The new age verification system will initially be launched in the United States in a test mode. Users who do not pass the age requirement (i.e., the age is less than 18 years old) will face restrictions in the future:
- Blocking the viewing of videos with age restrictions;
- Display only non-personalized ads;
- Restrictions on repeated recommendations with sensitive topics (e.g., body images);
- Display privacy reminders when uploading videos or publicly commenting, as well as reminders to take a break or go to sleep.
Obviously, all of this technology will be powered by AI, which Google announced in early 2025.
What should I do if YouTube makes a mistake in determining my age?
YouTube will notify users if it determines that they are under 18, but in case of a mistake, the company advises to confirm their age officially — downloadstate-issued ID, take a selfie, or enter credit card information.
The platform warns that some bloggers may «face a change in audience» due to restrictions for teenagers, which could lead to a decrease in advertising revenue.
«Over the next few weeks, we will start rolling out AI-based verification to a small group of users in the US», — writes James Besser, YouTube’s director of product management, in a post explaining the changes. Besser adds that YouTube «will closely monitor» the update before rolling it out to other countries.
Last week, online age verification rules came into effect in the UK, requiring users to confirm their age on sites with pornography or content considered «harmful». Teenagers, however, quickly found a loophole in which The photo mode of the game Death Stranding helped with realistic and detailed facial images.
Several US states have passed laws that block access to pornographic websites for minorswhile efforts to impose age restrictions on social media platforms have largely failed. The European Union is also testing a prototype age verification system that will be associated with digital identifiers.
Earlier, we wrote that YouTube expands the player «as in Apple» and hides the page «Trends» and also introduces stricter monetization requirements, which should deprive AI authors of earnings on the platform.
Source: YouTube
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