Instagram will require users to declare their birthday, thus promoting the safety of teenagers. Young people will not be able to see "sensitive" content.
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Instagram will require users to declare their birthday , an update the company says is intended to protect young people using its app.
The photo app already requires new users to state their date of birth upon registration, a requirement valid from the end of 2019. However, people who have registered in the past may not have shared the relevant information.
In the coming weeks, Instagram will start urging users who have not declared a date of birth to do so. While they may initially reject the prompts, the app will eventually require everyone a birthday.
There are currently two scenarios in which users will be asked about their birthday. First, the application will "sometimes" display a notification. A separate prompt may also appear if users try to see a post hidden behind a warning screen.
These warnings appear on “ sensitive content ” that may not violate Instagram’s official rules but could be considered borderline, such as “suggestive” images or photos of medical procedures. Users will no longer be able to see these posts until they give their birthday, and younger ages may not even be able to see these posts.
The company also says it will use artificial intelligence to detect when a user may have given a false birthday, and that some users may be asked to “verify” their age. “In the future, if someone tells us they’re over a certain age and our technology tells us otherwise, we’ll show them a menu of options to verify their age,” the company says. “This work is still in its early stages.”
The changes are the latest as Instagram tries to strengthen its safety and privacy features for its younger users. The company has also said it will make accounts for young teens private by default and limit the ability for advertisers to target those accounts.
It recently introduced features to prevent adult strangers from texting teens. Instagram also said it was in the early stages of thinking about releasing its service to users under the age of 13, which has caused concern among lawmakers.
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