Instagram steps up AI age checks to catch teens posing as adults
Instagram fights fake ages with smart AI detection (Illustrative photo: Getty Images)
Instagram is stepping up its efforts to verify users’ ages using artificial intelligence, targeting teens who may be misrepresenting themselves as adults, reports AP News.
Meta, the parent company of Instagram, announced that the platform will now proactively use AI to detect teen users who may have registered with a false birthdate.
If the system suspects an account belongs to someone underage, it will automatically reclassify it as a teen account — with stricter privacy and content controls.
Teen accounts on Instagram are private by default, and direct messages are limited to people the teen already follows or is connected to.
Meta also restricts exposure to "sensitive content," including violent videos and posts promoting cosmetic procedures.
Additionally, teens receive notifications if they’re using the app for more than 60 minutes, and a "sleep mode" kicks in between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., silencing notifications and auto-replying to DMs.
How Instagram's AI detects age misrepresentation
According to Meta, the AI system analyzes a range of signals, including the type of content the account engages with, profile details, and when the account was created, to estimate the user’s real age.
"We’ve been training our AI to look for these cues and take action when something doesn’t align," the company said. Parents will also be notified and given guidance on how to discuss online age honesty with their teens.
This move comes as lawmakers push for tougher age-verification laws and platforms face rising scrutiny over their impact on teens’ mental health.
These updates build on Instagram’s previous move this month, when the platform restricted users under 16 from livestreaming or unblurring nude images in DMs without parental approval. Meta is clearly ramping up its teen safety features — not only on Instagram, but across Facebook and Messenger too.
