The media regulator said it would assess these companies\u2019 \u201cpractical actions to keep children safe\u201d until the end of September before taking \u201cswift enforcement action\u201d if the tech companies fail to satisfy the law\u2019s requirements. <\/p>\n
Ofcom has recommended a series of what it deems to be \u201chighly effective\u201d tools that sites can use to verify users\u2019 ages, including bank or credit card checks, scanning photo IDs, links to phone numbers and email addresses, and analysing facial features via photo or video. <\/p>\n
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But many social media companies, including Meta, Google-owned YouTube and TikTok, are relying on alternative techniques that use machine-learning technology to \u201cinfer\u201d a user\u2019s age based on how they use the site and who they communicate with. These AI-based systems have not yet been endorsed by Ofcom, although the regulator says that its own list of proposed tools is \u201cnon-exhaustive\u201d. <\/p>\n YouTube uses a \u201chighly effective AI-driven age inference model that assesses user behaviour as part of our age verification process\u201d, as well as offering an age-gated part of its platform. <\/p>\n Meta said it planned to roll out a similar AI-based system to detect when users are lying about their age in the UK in the autumn, after previously testing it in the US. It already offers \u201cteen accounts\u201d across its apps, including Instagram and Facebook, which offer tougher content filters and limit who can contact a young user. <\/p>\n Ofcom said it would begin to assess how effective these AI tools can be next week. <\/p>\n The UK Online Safety Act requires online platforms to adopt measures to prevent children from accessing age-inappropriate content. The legislation is among the world\u2019s first to impose such strict controls on tech companies. <\/p>\n In effect this means that social media sites can either commit to removing all adult content, which is almost impossible in many cases; creating a \u201csafe\u201d site without adult content for under-18s; or bringing in strict new ways to verify age, from credit cards, facial age recognition or through other \u201chighly effective\u201d tech solutions. <\/p>\n \u201cWe set out earlier in the year what \u2018highly effective\u2019 means, and we\u2019ll need to make sure that it works,\u201d said Griffiths. \u201cIf there are failures, then people are moving on to the short list of law enforcement. We have over 6,000 websites that are committed to have highly effective age assurance by midnight [on Thursday night].\u201d<\/p>\n Reddit, which allows its users to be anonymous, this month began collecting and verifying the age of UK users before they can view mature content using a facial recognition software called Persona using either an uploaded selfie or a photo of a government-recognised ID<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/https:\/\/www.ft.com\/__origami\/service\/image\/v2\/images\/raw\/https%3A%2F%2Fd1e00ek4ebabms.cloudfront.net.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Reddit](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/https:\/\/d1e00ek4ebabms.cloudfront.net\/production\/7af14954-b2d3-4990-a7cd-125288b7fe55.jpg\")
Reddit this month began collecting and verifying the age of UK users before they can view mature content using a facial recognition software called Persona \u00a9 Dado Ruvic\/Reuters<\/p>\n