EU age-check app 'ready' in push to protect children online

BRUSSELS

European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday that an EU-developed age verification app was ready to go, as the bloc pushes to better protect children from online harm.

Brussels has been under pressure to come up with more stringent measures to safeguard children online as several EU capitals move ahead with plans to ban social media under a certain age.

To that end, five EU countries, including France and Italy, last year started testing an age-check app that von der Leyen said yesterday was now "technically ready."

"This app will allow users to prove their age when accessing online platforms. Just like shops ask for proof of age for people buying alcoholic beverages," von der Leyen told journalists in Brussels.

She said the app uses the same model adopted during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Brussels developed a tool allowing people to prove they had been vaccinated as countries reopened after lockdowns.

Once the app is available, users would be able to download it from an online store, set it up with their passport or ID card and then use it to prove they are above a certain age to access some websites or platforms, she said.

The app is "completely anonymous" to ensure people cannot be tracked when accessing websites, and based on open-source code, allowing for non-EU states to adopt it if they wish.

"Online platforms can easily rely on our age verification app. So there are no more excuses," von der Leyen said.

"Europe offers a free and easy to use solution that can shield our children from harmful and illegal content,"

Pressure to act at EU level has been rising since Australia's groundbreaking social media ban for under-16s.

France has been spearheading the push alongside partners including Denmark, Greece and Spain, with a hotly debated ban for under-15s working its way through the French parliament.