Meta is expanding its AI-powered age-estimation technology globally in a bid to identify underage users and strengthen protections for teenagers across its platforms.
The social media giant said it will use artificial intelligence to identify accounts it suspects belong to teenagers, even when users have entered a false date of birth to appear older.
“We use AI technology to find people we suspect to be teens, even if they use an adult birthday, and place them in Teen Account protections,” Meta said in an announcement on Monday.
“Since first introducing this technology, we’ve been placing more teens in age-appropriate protections and are encouraged by the results. Based on that success, today we’re expanding this technology globally.”
The technology, which Meta has been testing in several markets, including Australia, the US, UK and Canada, analyses information such as users’ behaviour and posts to estimate their age.
Accounts identified as belonging to teenagers can then be automatically placed into Teen Account settings, regardless of the birthday originally entered during sign-up.
The move comes as Meta faces mounting scrutiny over the safety of young people on its platforms, alongside growing legal action over allegations that its services expose teenagers to harmful content and encourage addictive behaviour.
In March, the company lost a major case brought by the state of New Mexico. A jury found Meta liable for misleading consumers about endangering children and the safety of its platforms. Meta, which said it would fight the decision, was ordered to pay nearly $950 billion in related penalties.
It also follows Australia’s under-16 social media ban, which came into effect in December 2025.
Meta has already removed hundreds of thousands of underage accounts in response to the legislation. By 30 June 2026, the company had removed access to 756,000 accounts across Facebook and Instagram, including 462,000 Instagram accounts and 294,000 Facebook accounts.
The latest expansion of its age-estimation technology forms part of Meta’s broader efforts to identify users who may be circumventing age restrictions.
Teen Accounts come with additional safeguards, including restrictions on who can contact users, the content they can view and how much time they spend on the platforms.
Instagram also reminds teenagers to leave the app after 60 minutes of activity and automatically mutes notifications overnight.
Meta said parents in the US who have set up Instagram accounts for teenagers will receive notifications about the new measures this month, with the technology set to expand to Facebook and Threads later in the year.
