EU age verification app ready to protect children’s rights, Von Der Leyen says

The European Union’s age verification app is ready for roll-out, Ursula von der Leyen has said.

The UK Government is consulting on a raft of measures aimed at protecting children and young people online.

The Growing Up in the Online World consultation has six more weeks to run and seeks feedback on steps including a minimum age threshold for social media, AI chatbot safeguards and curbs on certain design features aimed at hooking users in. 

Von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said the EU’s own age verification app is “technically ready” and will be rolled out for public use “soon”.

It’s claimed the app, which is anonymous and open source, will improve privacy and data control and ensure online platforms are held to account. Verification can be made via the use of a passport, national ID or trusted provider such as a bank or school. Tech firms will use that data to check a user is old enough to access services.

Commission leaders said member states France, Denmark, Greece, Italy, Spain, Cyprus and Ireland are “front-runners” and are planning to integrate the app into their national ‘wallets’. The bloc as a whole is said to be “making great progress”.

In a statement, von der Leyen and executive vice-president Henna Virkkunen said: “This app gives parents, teachers, caretakers a powerful tool to protect children. Because we will have zero tolerance for companies that do not respect our children's rights. And this is why we are moving ahead with full speed and determination on the enforcement of our European rules. We are holding accountable those online platforms that do not protect our kids enough.

“The new age verification solution and the enforcement of our rules go hand in hand. Children's rights in the European Union come before commercial interest. And we will make sure they do.”