Millions of Britons should prove they're over 18 with strict age checks built into the operating systems that power iPhone and Android smartphones, Facebook parent company Meta has urged the UK Government.
Executives from the Californian company, which also owns WhatsApp and Instagram, met with senior officials from the Labour Government and Ofcom to discuss its approach to child safety ahead of the results of the ongoing consultation into an outright social media ban for under-16s in the UK.
Meta executives argued that age verification should be handled by the operating system on the device not platforms like Instagram and Facebook, The Daily Telegraph reports. Under the proposed system, Apple's iOS and Google's Android software will verify the age of the device owner and send a signal that can be double-checked by Facebook and other Meta-owned apps using its own verification systems.
Meta introduced Teen Accounts for Instagram earlier this year to restrict certain features for younger users
|META PRESS OFFICE | GB NEWS
In a blog post published in early May, Meta argued that age verification by the operating system offers a "centralised, consistent, and privacy-preserving place for age assurance" instead of "requiring every individual app to comply with different rules".
It adds: "It also helps ensure that the many apps teens use offer the same standard of protection."
With the introduction of iOS 26.4, Apple required iPhone and iPad owners in the UK to verify they're over 18. Failure to do so would block them from accessing adult websites, some high-risk social media content, and impose stricter “communication safety” checks in Messages and FaceTime designed to detect nudity in images and videos.
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For most iPhone and iPad owners, the process takes a few seconds as Apple checks the credit card stored on file, or how long you’ve had an Apple Account, to help confirm that you’re an adult. You can also scan a UK passport, driving licence, or Government-issued ID to confirm that you’re an adult.
If you have a credit card saved with your Apple Account for purchases on the App Store, rentals on iTunes, or subscriptions to services like iCloud+ or Apple Music, the process of verifying that you are over 18 takes a few seconds
|APPLE PRESS OFFICE | GB NEWS
Apple has included age ratings since the launch of the App Store back in July 2008, with parents able to prevent younger device owners from downloading software with specific ratings. It updated the system by adding more granular ratings — 13+, 16+, and 18+ — and retiring the old 12+ and 17+ categories last year.
While Google has similar age ratings for the Play Store and a slew of other parental tools, just like iOS and iPadOS, to keep younger device owners safe, the US company has yet to enforce a mandatory OS-level age verification in the UK. For the recommendation from Meta executives to work, it would need to match the tools launched by Apple.
Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, a spokesperson for Google said the company behind Android, YouTube, and Gmail wanted to ensure younger people were kept safe online “without losing the benefits, including the educational content and useful information that helps them learn and grow”.
“We understand the concerns of parents navigating the digital age, which is why we have long invested in new technologies, default protections and designing age-appropriate experiences to support wellbeing.”
The consultation to help the Government decide what action it should take, titled Growing Up In The Online World, closes later today (May 26, 2026). It could pave the way for an Australia-style ban on under-16s using social media or lead to other measures, such as a limit on scrolling or overnight curfews for children. More than 70,000 people have engaged with the consultation, according to a Government spokesperson.