Additions include the ability to select an age range for the child, so no specific or identifying information is revealed.
US multinational Apple has released a whitepaper detailing plans to introduce several new features focused on keeping children safe when using Apple’s technology. The company, among others, had drawn criticism from organisations such as Meta for an inability to assess a person’s age at an app store level.
Reportedly, Apple previously lobbied against a Louisiana Bill which would require the company to verify and enforce age restrictions through the App Store, instead of making it the responsibility of each individual app.
New features to be rolled out in the coming months include the parental ability to set an age range for a child to limit their access to adult or age-inappropriate material. The Declared Age Range API will enable minors to access suitable content without having to share their date of birth or age with an app, but instead with limited subset of developers.
“Some apps may find it appropriate or even legally required to use age verification, which confirms user age with a high level of certainty, often through collecting a user’s sensitive personal information, like a government issued ID, to keep kids away from inappropriate content,” the Apple whitepaper said.
“But most apps don’t. That’s why the right place to address the dangers of age restricted content online is the limited set of websites and apps that host that kind of content.”
Changes to the Child Account include a new set-up process which allows parents to implement default settings immediately, so their child can use the device safely, even if the parent takes longer to fully set it up. The adult in charge can also easily change a child’s device to identify as a Child Account and bring it under parental control.
Apple will also be updating its global age ratings in order to provide young Apple users with a positive and safe experience, the company said. The new system will break down previously used ratings for adolescents aged between 12 and 17 and provide them with more options, with new categories to include content specific for young people aged 13 and older, 16 and older, and 18 and older.
“We publish these age ratings on the App Store page for each app and we reject apps from the App Store if they are misleading or inaccurate. These age ratings are integrated into our operating system and work with parental control features like Screen Time and Ask to Buy.
“This will allow users a more granular understanding of an app’s appropriateness, and developers a more precise way to rate their app.”
Recently Apple has also been criticised for using privacy concerns as an excuse to drop a number of child safety features. In December of last year, an unnamed plaintiff brought a lawsuit against the firm accusing it of dropping child sexual abuse material (CSAM) detection features and privacy-washing its obligations.
In 2021, Apple planned to introduce measures on iOS systems that would detect CSAM images on a child’s device and notify law enforcement that illegal content was being stored over the cloud, however, this plan was later dropped in response to backlash from privacy advocates who feared it could be used as a method to spy on people.
Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.
