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YouTube’s new AI to spot under-18s on adult accounts, even if they’ve lied about their age
Accounts flagged as likely belonging to under-18s will face a series of measures.
Accounts flagged as likely belonging to under-18s will face a series of measures.
YouTube will roll out a new artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) age-estimation system in the United States from 13 August, aimed at detecting users under 18 who have misrepresented their age when creating an account.
The system will no longer rely solely on the date of birth entered during sign-up. Instead, it will analyse a range of activity signals – including the types of videos watched, search topics, and the length of time the account has been active – to estimate a user’s age. This move is designed to identify minors accessing adult accounts or bypassing existing age checks.
Restrictions for flagged accounts Accounts flagged as likely belonging to under-18s will face a series of measures. Personalised advertising will be disabled, YouTube’s digital wellbeing tools – such as bedtime reminders and screen-time tracking – will be automatically enabled, and access to certain categories of content will be restricted, particularly where repeated viewing could be harmful.
The changes form part of YouTube’s wider effort to shield children and teenagers from unsuitable material and to curb data collection for targeted advertising. The company has acknowledged, however, that the system will not be foolproof. Adults may be wrongly identified as minors – for example, parents who frequently watch children’s content.
In such cases, affected users will be required to verify their age to lift the restrictions. Verification methods include submitting a government-issued identity document, uploading a selfie for comparison, or providing credit card details – steps that may raise privacy concerns for those unwilling to share sensitive information with the platform.
YouTube says it will assess the system’s effectiveness in the US before considering a global rollout.
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