YouTube will check the age of users with AI and it is a concern for your private life

YouTube

YouTube is above all a participatory video streaming site where each user (professional and private) can create their own universe and share all their videos with others.

• License:
  Free license
• Author :
  Google Inc.
• Operating systems:
  Windows 10/11, online service, Android, iOS iPhone / iPad
• Categories:
  Video, Internet

It’s simple, all platforms start to check the age of users to protect minor people. In France, it started with the blocking of several pornographic sites.

Automation of age via AI

For YouTube, it was at the end of July that Google announced its intention to use AI to check age. James Beser, director of product management at Youtube Youth, explains that this technology gives “The best experiences and protections adapted to age.”

First, verification will be applied for a small group of American users. “We will start to deploy automatic learning to estimate the age of users, so that adolescents are treated as adolescents and adults and adults.” specifies James Beser.

To estimate the age of the user, the AI will analyze the type of video sought, the categories viewed and the seniority of the account. Suffice to say that it is not perfect. And if the system identifies a teenager, the appropriate protections will be applied automatically, without taking into account the date of birth indicated in the profile.

In the event of an estimate error, it will be necessary to prove their majority for the user with an identity document or a credit card. Therefore, you provide elements sensitive to the company when you have not asked for anything and you are of age.

Despite everything, YouTube explains that this operation has successfully worked in other markets for some time.

Concerns in terms of privacy

As explained previously for the example of pornographic sites, it is a global trend in strengthening the protection of minors. In addition to France, this is particularly the case in the United Kingdom as part of the Online Safety Act. And even Spotify restricted certain pieces for minor users.

Since then, Internet users have turned to VPNs to get around the regulations. There are flaws since identity documents are falsifiable and the problem may worsen with generative AI. Samir Jain, political vice-president of the Center for Democracy & Technology, says he is concerned.

According to him, these requirements “Raise serious concerns about privacy and freedom of expression”. He believes that this verification could “To upset access to speeches protected by the first amendment on the Internet for all, children and adults”.

Samir Jain does not necessarily oppose these laws but requires that the age verification tools be precise and limit the collection, sharing and conservation of personal information, in particular sensitive data such as birth dates and biometric data.