The EU launches an experimental app for online age verification. Initial tests are also underway in Italy: how it works

The European Commission has introduced new guidelines to protect minors in the digital world , along with an experimental app designed to check the age of users on online platforms, as required by the Digital Services Act .

Commission Vice-President Henna Virkkunen announced the move. "Ensuring the safety of our children and young people online is of paramount importance to this Commission," Virkkunen explained. "Platforms have no excuse for continuing to put them at risk."

The first tests also in Italy

Italy, France, Spain, Greece and Denmark will participate in the app's testing phase.

The five Member States will be the first to adopt an open source tool with the aim of integrating it into their digital identity wallets or offering a standalone national app on app stores.

"In parallel," the European Commission website states , "extensive testing will be conducted with several online platforms, including adult content providers. Platforms not yet participating in the trial are invited to join the testing phase."

User testing began at the end of June and will be expanded with the support of the European Centres for a Safer Internet.

The prototype app designed by the EU represents a " gold standard ," meaning the most advanced and reliable model currently available for verifying age online. This means it is considered an ideal model to follow in terms of safety, effectiveness, and respect for privacy .

The app will allow users to easily prove whether they are over 18 —for example, to access content intended for adults only—without having to reveal sensitive information such as their precise age or identity.

How the age verification app will work

Once the app is live, users will be able to use it to prove they are the required age: an authorized entity will verify their personal data (such as date of birth), but the platforms will only receive a generic confirmation that the user is over 18, without access to any other information. Verification and use of the age certificate will be handled by separate entities, thus maintaining anonymity. Whoever issues the proof will not know where it is being used, and each verification can only be used once, preventing any form of cross-platform tracking.

"Technically, it will be possible to extend this solution to other age limits or other uses, such as the purchase of alcohol," the EU states. "Member states will be able to decide whether to do so when they customize the system at the national level, or at a later stage."

The EU presented the new tool, emphasizing its high level of confidentiality: no one will be able to know what content is viewed after using the app, nor will it be possible to track or reconstruct the history of online activity.

"During the pilot phase, the solution will be enhanced with new features," the European Commission explains. "In addition to integration with eID (digital identity), additional ways to prove that you are over 18 will be added. The system will also be enhanced with the latest privacy-protecting technologies, such as zero-knowledge proofs. Privacy-related features cannot be modified, but Member States will be able to customize the app's interface and content, for example by adapting them to the national language or local design."

The new app represents one of the possible elements of the future European Digital Identity Wallet , a system that aims to provide a secure and integrated identity across all digital services, including age verification, without sacrificing privacy.

What is the Digital Service Act?

The experimental app requested by the EU is in line with the Digital Services Act , which came into force on 17 February 2024.

The regulation imposes specific obligations on platforms, particularly large ones that are easily accessible to minors, to take proactive measures to mitigate risks and ensure a safer environment for young users.

The DSA guidelines require platforms to assess these risks (through a risk review) and choose between different methods to verify the age of those who use them: self-declaration, age estimation, or robust verification (based on documents or digital identities).

Self-declaration is considered inadequate in high-risk cases, while an estimate may not be sufficient for 18+ content. In these cases, robust verification is required, ideally through the future European digital identity wallet, which is expected to be available by the end of 2026 .

Meanwhile, the EU's proposed experimental app could be useful for verifying users' ages without revealing additional personal data.