Apple Launches New Child Safety Measures, Featuring an App Age-Verification System
Apple has unveiled new initiatives aimed at enhancing safety for children and teens using its devices. These updates include simplified child account setup and the ability for parents to share their children’s ages with app developers, allowing for more age-appropriate content. The App Store will introduce refined age ratings to provide clearer guidance on app suitability.
Additionally, product pages for third-party apps will display more details to assist parents in making informed choices, such as whether an app includes user-generated content, ads, or built-in parental controls.
Navigating Online Child Safety Amid Regulatory Debates
These changes, set to roll out later this year, come as lawmakers at both state and federal levels debate regulations on online child safety. Some states have proposed requiring app store operators to verify children’s ages before allowing downloads.
Apple’s approach balances these concerns by letting parents input their children’s ages while keeping developers responsible for tailoring content accordingly.
Apple has streamlined the setup process for child accounts, which are mandatory for users under 13 and optional for those up to 18.
Now, when creating a child account, parents can select their child’s age range and verify their status as the household adult by confirming their payment history with an existing Apple-linked credit card—eliminating the need to manually enter card details.
Independent Setup with Built-in Child Protections
If a parent isn’t available to complete the setup, children can start using their iPhone or iPad independently. Apple will automatically enable age-appropriate web filters and limit access to preinstalled apps like Notes, Pages, and Keynote. During this period, neither Apple nor third-party developers can collect data without parental consent.
Kids will receive reminders to have a parent finish setup when they try to download apps from the App Store. Once the process is complete, they’ll be able to use Apple services with the content and app restrictions set by their parent.
A key aspect of this system is how third-party developers utilize this age information to verify and tailor app experiences for young users.
Enhancing Age Verification with Apple’s Declared Age Range API
Instead of requiring kids to enter their birthdays, as many social apps currently do, developers can now use Apple’s new Declared Age Range API. This API grants access to the age range provided by parents during child account setup, allowing developers to tailor app experiences accordingly. Parents can update this information at any time if needed.
The API does not share a child’s exact birthdate—only their age range. Parents also have the option to revoke this permission later if necessary.
From a child’s perspective, if an app requires age information, a pop-up will appear asking if they want to share their age range, similar to permission requests for location, camera, or microphone access.
This system helps prevent kids from falsifying their birthdate to bypass age restrictions, making it a more reliable approach. However, developers must opt in and integrate the API themselves. If pending state legislation moves forward, some apps or categories may be legally required to adopt this system in the future.
A More Granular Age Rating System for the App Store
Apple is updating its App Store age rating system to provide more detailed age categories. Currently, apps are classified into four groups: 4+, 9+, 12+, and 17+. The new system will refine the teenage categories into 13+, 16+, and 18+, while keeping the 4+ and 9+ designations.
An app’s age rating is based on developers’ responses to Apple’s content-related questions, including the nature, frequency, and intensity of the material. This update aims to help parents assess whether an app is suitable for their child. Additionally, if parental content restrictions are enabled, kids won’t be able to download or update apps that exceed their assigned age range.
Restricted apps will also be hidden from certain App Store sections, such as editorial stories and the Today, Games, and Apps tabs, if they aren’t appropriate for a child’s age.
Some child account updates are already available in the iOS 18.4 public beta, while features like the Declared Age Range API, new age ratings, and App Store adjustments will launch later this year.
Responding to the update, a Meta spokesperson called it “a positive first step” but noted that developers can only apply age-based protections if a teen consents. They also emphasized the need for legislation requiring app stores to verify a child’s age and obtain parental approval before app downloads.
Read the original article on: TechCrunch
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