Google to begin using age assurance tech to identify underage accounts in Canada

Ottawa — Google plans to introduce age assurance technology in Canada to identify underage users of its platform. The AI-driven system analyzes various signals from user accounts, such as search history and video-watching patterns, to determine if a user is under 18. If the technology flags a user as underage, their Google account will be enhanced with protections like restricted content recommendations.

In the event of a false positive, users will be able to prove their age through a government ID or selfie. The technology rollout will begin in the coming days, with Google carefully monitoring performance as it expands. Director of government affairs and public policy at Google Canada, Jeanette Patell, stated that no new data collection will occur, as the system uses pre-existing account data.

Patell emphasized that the company believes liability for age restrictions lies with service owners. The move aligns with global efforts to implement age restrictions for social media, with Meta already utilizing AI to identify underage users in Canada.