Age-check fears mount ahead of child social media ban
As age verification checks begin to be implemented on social media platforms in a world-leading ban on under-16s, concerns are growing that tech giants will mistakenly identify children as adults.
The social media ban will begin on Wednesday and cover YouTube, X, Facebook, Reddit and Threads platforms; the government has stated that more may be added at a later stage.
Many platforms that are on the e-Safety Commission’s list of banned platforms will use facial scanning as the first step towards age assurance.
Platforms will decide which age verification methods to use.
The only condition, the government said, is that asking for ID should not be the only form of control.
Some platforms, such as TikTok, say they will use facial age estimation service Yoti, and a government trial found it had good accuracy overall, but 34 to 57 percent of 13 to 15-year-olds were incorrectly classified as over 16.
The report also stated that 55 percent of 18-year-olds are under 18 years of age.
The federal opposition says the government is relying on “flawed technology.”
“The government set the deadline (December 10), there were errors in the hearing, but they went ahead with the deadline,” communications spokeswoman Melissa McIntosh told AAP.
Snapchat said users who were mistakenly flagged as under 16 can appeal by going through a debit card check or providing government-issued identification information such as a passport or driver’s license.
Ms McIntosh has concerns about age assurance companies storing data offshore.
“The best response I can get from the platforms is (to delete personal data as quickly as possible),” he said.
“No one can say as quickly as possible what it really means.”
Communications Minister Anika Wells said introducing the ban would not be perfect, but would ultimately change the culture and protect seven in 10 children who witness online harm.
Lisa Given, director of the Center for Human-AI Information Environments at RMIT University, said there were risks in age assurance measures.
He said a 15-year-old could be mistakenly identified as over 16 and still have access to their account, while older teens could be banned.
“These technologies have typical failure rates of one to three years,” Professor Given said.
“This means a 17-year-old could be denied access to their account if the technology guesses they are under 16 and they are asked to provide evidence of their actual age.”
Australia’s Associated Press is the beating heart of Australian news. AAP is Australia’s only independent national news channel and has been providing accurate, reliable and fast-paced news content to the media industry, government and corporate sector for 85 years. We inform Australia.
