Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
The internet poses significant risks for minors, which is why there are age restrictions for a variety of online services. However, most current age verification techniques depend on users being truthful when setting up their accounts. It is quite simple to claim a false age to bypass the limitations imposed on users under 18. Google aims to address this challenge utilizing artificial intelligence. Unidentified AI models will assess whether a user is below the legal age and implement necessary restrictions.
This initiative isn’t limited to YouTube; Google intends to implement AI-driven age verification methods across all its services, verifying ages and applying automatic measures that may restrict user capabilities within Google applications linked to their accounts. Individuals identified as underage will be required to validate their age by submitting a government-issued ID or credit card to Google’s servers.
Before explaining why this situation is unsettling, I want to acknowledge that Google’s goals are commendable. However, for Gemini, or any other Google AI system, to accurately determine an individual’s age, Google’s AI must be provided with vast amounts of user information. This represents an attempt to customize a Google user’s experience that is unrelated to advertising. It involves gathering and utilizing data for profiling that users may not necessarily consent to.
If this method can be utilized to effectively estimate someone’s age, what prevents Google from employing AI to construct exceptionally precise user profiles, regardless of whether users consent to a tailored Google AI experience?
