Since we last discussed the connection between mobile identity and child protection on the IPification blog, this topic has only further increased in relevance all around the world.
In recent weeks, child protection in the digital age has become a burning topic in Australia where the Australian government has announced plans for stricter measures and legislation to restrict access to social media and other digital platforms for children and younger teenagers.
When you take into consideration the increasing number of children accessing a variety of online platforms — by the age of 11, 53% of US children own a smartphone, and by their teenage years, 84% have one of their own — it makes perfect sense that a robust age verification system is needed: there is no question about that.
However, the question on everyone’s mind is what this age verification process could look like and who will manage it. I’ll try to answer that for you today!
Let’s go over the recent events Down Under, the challenges they’ll need to address, and how they can achieve that.
What’s happening in Australia?
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that the legislation, expected by the end of 2024, would set a minimum age for accessing these platforms, likely between 14 and 16.
A $6.5 million age assurance trial is currently testing different approaches to age verification, with the findings set to inform the development of the new policy.
Australia is looking to the UK as an example, where age assurance legislation has already been implemented (to some degree). To address this challenge, the UK has outlined five ways companies can confirm a user’s age:
– Allowing banks to verify a user is over 18
– Allowing mobile providers to confirm a user is an adult (Similar to how IPification Age Verification works 🙂
– Credit card checks (verifying the user is over 18 to hold a valid credit card)
– Asking users to upload a photo to the site, which is then matched with photo ID
– The use of facial age estimation technology
Australia’s eSafety Commissioner has already echoed the need for these kinds of solutions, calling for privacy-conscious methods to verify age without exposing personal information.
The recommendation is clear: a “double-blind tokenised approach” is the ideal route.
In this model, a device-based token is used, where third-party providers securely transfer age data between sites and verification services—without sharing sensitive information, ensuring maximum privacy while confirming someone’s age.
With that, companies also make sure to stay compliant with various global general and children’s data protection laws such as the GDPR in Europe, the Children’s Privacy Protection Act of 1998 in the USA, PIPL in China, etc.
Most of these laws follow similar principles:
– Be aware of and enforce the appropriate age of consent in your region
– Recognize that children may use your platform, even if it’s not designed for them
– Avoid storing, using, or sharing children’s data, and don’t advertise to them unless you’ve obtained clear parental consent
– If you seek parental consent, make sure it’s verifiable and have a simple process for blocking minors if the consent turns out to be invalid
We kept all that in mind when we designed IPification Age Verification.
Where IPification Fits In
Child protection requires high security and maximum data privacy — a huge challenge today when around 80% of children living in the developed world have a digital footprint before they are two years old due to their family members’ digital lives.
To make this happen, companies need an age identification solution that lets them know a user’s age without actually identifying them. This way, they don’t need to keep, use, or share personal data, and they avoid advertising to kids without proper parental consent.
That’s where IPification comes in with an easy-to-use child protection solution for mobile network operators and app developers.
Thanks to mobile network operator data, IPification enables app developers to identify users’ ages. Then, IPification Age Verification sends a signal to the app, flagging any underage users and helping the mobile app developer to stay compliant with the legislation.
By utilizing SIM card, network, and device data, IPification creates a unique Mobile ID key for each user. The beauty of this process lies in the fact that sensitive data is never transferred over the network, protecting user privacy at all times.
This aligns perfectly with the eSafety Commissioner’s call for a tokenised approach to age verification. Moreover, with mobile providers involved in the age verification process, IPification confirms whether a user is of legal age, also in line with the recommended UK model.
Even beyond these two countries, IPification Age Verification is compliant with the majority of child protection and privacy laws globally. That being said, the devil is in the details!
But Team IPification is right here, ready to help. Did you know that you can schedule a free consultation and together, we can go over the child protection and privacy requirements in your region? Get in touch with us today!
