The European Commission has adopted a recommendation urging EU Member States to accelerate deployment of a privacy-preserving age verification app, with the goal of making it available to citizens by the end of 2026.
The app enables users to prove they meet a required age threshold without revealing their exact age, identity, or other personal details. Member States can deploy it as a standalone application or integrate it into a European Digital Identity Wallet.
The Commission has developed a blueprint for the app’s architecture and is now asking Member States to customize and produce the application for their own citizens. The recommendation specifies actions Member States should take to ensure swift availability and cross-border interoperability of the solution.
Executive Vice-President for Tech Sovereignty, Security and Democracy Henna Virkkunen called the app the next step toward an online environment where children are safe without restricting the rights of adults.
The initiative falls under the EU’s Digital Services Act, which requires online platforms to ensure high levels of privacy, security, and safety for minors. The Commission has positioned age verification as a critical tool for child online protection across the bloc.
The recommendation also aligns with the broader EU digital identity framework, including the eIDAS 2.0 regulation that will require Member States to offer digital identity wallets to all citizens. Several commercial providers have already begun building infrastructure for the wallet ecosystem.
The Commission’s approach prioritizes anonymous proof-of-age technologies, aiming to set standards for privacy and data protection while ensuring platforms can verify that users meet minimum age requirements for accessing certain content and services.
Sources: European Commission, Reuters
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By Ali Nassar-Smith
