The users need to upload their video selfies to allow the platform to confirm their age through an AI tool. Also, they can take the help of their three mutual friends to validate their age, who will have three days to respond. As of now, Instagram is testing these methods with US users. Also read:Instagram Launches AMBER Alerts to Help Locate Missing Children
The idea behind the new methods of age verification
Instagram has introduced these new methods for age verification to make sure that the content seen by young users is age-appropriate. Back in 2021, Facebook’s whistleblower showed his concern regarding the impact of the platform on its younger users. His research showed how social media sites can damage body image and mental health, especially of teenage girls. It’s been less than a year and Instagram is trying its best to protect its young users from inappropriate posts.
Instagram’s AI partner Yoti
Yoti-a Landon-based company is the mastermind behind this AI technology for age verification. Instagram has partnered with Yoti for this new method of age verification. For this method, a user will record a video selfie on his smartphone and Instagram will capture an image from the video and share it with Yoti. After which, Yoti’s AI will first detect the face in the picture and then scrutinize its facial features to figure out the person’s age. The results of which will be shown in 20 minutes Yoti’s chief policy and regulatory officer, Julie Dawson, told CNN Business about how its AI is trained with a dataset consisting of images of people’s faces along with the month and the year of the person’s birth. Even a professor at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, Karl Ricanek refered to Yoti’s technology as a great application of AI. He says “it’s a worthwhile endeavour to try and protect kids.” Also read:- How to Unlink Instagram from Facebook 2022
People tried the online demo of Yoti’s age-estimation technology
CNN employees over the age of 25 tried Yoti’s age-estimation technology. The results varied for all the employees. Some found their estimated age to be exact, while others were not satisfied by the results. There was a huge difference between their original age and the detected age. This trial shows that the technology is not yet appropriate for age verification. So, what do you think of the new methods for age verification? Will it work or not? Do share your thoughts with us through the comment section below.
