Meta is expanding the AI age estimation behind Instagram Teen Accounts to teens around the world, as per its latest update. The technology moves accounts that Meta suspects belong to teens into Teen Account protections even when the account lists an adult birthday.
Instagram already placed suspected teens into Teen Accounts in the United States, Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom, and Meta began extending it to the 27 European Union countries and Brazil in May. Parents in the United States start seeing an Instagram notification and an in-feed video in November that explain how Meta decides and how they can help confirm their teen’s age.
Meta now uses Apple’s age range signal in Australia
In Australia, Meta has started using Apple’s age range signal as another way to work out how old a user is. A parent sets up the teen’s device, the app store assigns an age range, and Apple passes that range to developers each time the teen downloads an app. Apple’s Declared Age Range API lets developers see a user’s age category without collecting personal data, and Apple is expanding it as part of its new child safety tools.
Meta says the signal stays inconsistent while collecting and sharing it is optional for app stores and developers. It wants laws that require age verification and parental consent at the app store level, and it describes its own age estimation as a backstop that sends corrections back to the app store. Meta has pushed for app store checks since 2023, when it asked Apple and Google to require parental approval for teen app downloads.
Instagram Teen Accounts age checks are coming to Threads
The same technology keeps rolling out on Facebook, and similar technology will launch on Threads later in 2026. Teen Accounts on Instagram, Facebook and Messenger limit who can contact a teen, what content the teen sees and how much time the teen spends in the apps.
Meta says the age estimation has already placed more teens into Teen Account protections and calls the results encouraging. Since May, anyone who changes a birthday from under 18 to over 18 has to confirm it with an ID or Yoti’s facial age estimation, and accounts that look like they belong to a child under 13 are deactivated until the holder proves their age.
The update follows Meta’s deal with 52 attorneys general
Under its agreement with 52 attorneys general across US states, territories and the District of Columbia, Meta is investing in stronger technology to catch accounts that may belong to children under 13. It is also strengthening the technology that finds teens aged 13 to 17, so those accounts land in teen experiences. Meta is calling on TikTok and YouTube to adopt the same practices, since teens use many apps beyond Instagram.
