Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:

To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what measures are being taken to ensure age verification on social media platforms is effective in preventing their usage by under-16s.

Age assurance technologies play a critical role in protecting children online.

The Secretary of State has asked Ofcom to launch a rapid assessment of what constitutes highly effective age assurance for establishing whether someone is over 16, as part of the announcement to ban social media companies from offering their services to under 16s.

In its assessment, Ofcom will consider how age assurance can be highly effective while avoiding excluding users without passports and driving licenses. This assessment will also prioritise data protection in the context of age assurance.