by Shane Coursen with assistance from Gemini
More oversight! More tyranny!! People freaking out!!! Are we all riled up yet? Cool. Take a breath and let’s get down to brass tacks.
Google recently put into effect a type of age verification system. It uses a variety of markers to guess a person’s age. those who are flagged by the AI model will receive a pop-up notification on their account. This notification will inform them that they have been identified as being under 18 and that the standard protections for teen accounts have been applied. Scary?
Here’s a summary of what’s been happening:
- Official Announcements: YouTube made an official announcement on a support forum, detailing the new policy and its rollout in the U.S. starting on August 13, 2025. This post provided details on how the AI model works, what happens if you’re flagged as a minor, and the options for age verification. (see: https://support.google.com/youtube/thread/356191968/extending-protections-to-more-us-based-teens)
- Notifications to Users: While not all users have received a direct notification, those who are flagged by the AI model will receive a pop-up notification on their account. This notification will inform them that they have been identified as being under 18 and that the standard protections for teen accounts have been applied.
- Media Coverage and Community Discussion: The change has generated significant discussion and news coverage. Numerous tech news sites and YouTube creators have produced articles and videos explaining the new policy, often referencing Google’s official announcements. There’s also been a lot of conversation on platforms like Reddit, with users sharing their concerns and experiences with the new system as it rolls out.
The bad news is your being watched. (newsflash, you were already being watched.) On the flip side, someone whose entire watch history is nothing but LEGO builds and nostalgic ’90s cartoons could suddenly find themselves on the ‘teen’ list.