AI age assurance not a hit with YouTube users

In the U.S., there is a growing campaign objecting to YouTube’s automated age assurance system, which uses machine learning algorithms to gauge age based on “a variety of signals.”

According to a blog from the company, “these signals include the types of videos a user is searching for, the categories of videos they have watched, or the longevity of the account.”

There are now nearly 100,000 signatures on a Change.org petition calling for YouTube to pull the plug on the system, which the authors say “analyzes your entire watch history and behavior to estimate your age, overriding the age you’ve set on your account.”

“If the system thinks you’re underage, you’ll be locked out of content unless you upload your government-issued ID – putting your personal information at serious risk.”

YouTube’s policy states that, when the system identifies a teen user, it will “automatically apply our age-appropriate experiences and protections.” These include “disabling personalized ads, turning on digital wellbeing tools to prevent young users from being bombarded with harmful content, and adding other safeguards, like limiting repetitive views of certain types of content.”

Users will “have the option to verify that they are 18 or over, such as using a credit card or a government ID,” to lift these restrictions.

The petition, started by an anonymous YouTube creator called Gerfdas Gaming, frames it as a question of legal rights and the need for a free, fair and open internet. “We cannot allow YouTube to quietly implement AI surveillance that violates privacy and autonomy,” they say. “Once these systems are normalized, they rarely go away – they expand.”

Article Topics

age verification  |  behavioral analysis  |  children  |  data privacy  |  Google  |  United States  |  YouTube