The European Union is piloting an age verification app project in Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom that aims to make it easier for online platforms to comply with rules requiring them to protect minors. The prototype app was announced on Monday along with guidelines that online platforms are encouraged to adopt in order to comply with the bloc’s Digital Services Act (DSA).
“Ensuring the safety of our children and young people online is of paramount importance to the European Commission,” said EU Technology Policy Leader Henna Virkkunen. “The guidelines on the protection of minors for online platforms, combined with the new age verification scheme, are a huge step forward in this regard. Platforms have no right to continue practices that put children at risk.”
The age verification app is designed to allow users to prove that they are 18 years old when they access restricted adult content online, helping the EU crack down on platforms that fail to comply with obligations under laws such as the DSA and allowing companies to use verification tools offered by the bloc instead of developing their own. The European Commission says that users of the app will retain full control over their personal information, such as their exact age or identification details, and that the online content they view will remain private.
The prototype verification app will be “tested and finalized in cooperation with Member States, online platforms and end users,” according to the European Commission, and Denmark, Greece, Spain, France and Italy intend to launch national age verification apps. This is positioned as an interim solution to be replaced by the EU’s Digital Identity Wallet, expected to be launched in 2026, which aims to provide “European citizens, residents and businesses with the ability to prove their identity when accessing digital services” as well as a place to “securely store, share and sign important digital documents.”
Although the block’s DSA rules do not set specific age verification requirements, websites and online platforms are obliged to protect the “health, physical, mental and moral development” of minors using their services and provide them with the “highest level of privacy, security and protection.” The new guidelines call on online platforms to address issues related to children’s access to harmful content, cyberbullying, unwanted interaction with strangers, and addictive design features.
In May, the EU launched an investigation into four major adult content websites – Pornhub, Stripchat, XNXX, and XVideos – over concerns that they do not have adequate age verification tools to prevent children from accessing pornographic content. The Commission said at the time that it was ready to make commitments that would help address these concerns, which could include the introduction of an EU age verification app.
