The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Jennifer Johnson

LONDON, Aug 1 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The age-appropriate internet has arrived, and Big Tech’s ad revenues may be among the victims. New British legislation has sent young social media users and other shy surfers scrambling to avoid identity checks. Virtual private networks (VPNs), which help customers hide their geographical location, were among the top downloads from UK app stores this week. While these tools mean younger users can keep logging onto social media, they also make it harder for tech firms to track them across the web.

One of the aims of the Online Safety Act, which came into force in Britain on July 25, is to prevent children from accessing inappropriate content. Anything labelled a “user-to-user service” – including social networks, dating apps, and porn sites – must check users’ ages if they carry unsafe content. In practice, that usually means getting them to provide a government-issued ID or upload a selfie which can be analysed by an artificial intelligence tool. That sent underage and privacy-conscious users looking for ways to avoid the checks.

VPNs, which can make it appear that browsers are logging in from a different country, are proving popular. As of Thursday, they accounted for four of the top five most-downloaded free apps on Apple’s UK store. Swiss privacy software specialist Proton says daily signups in Britain increased 1,800% after the Online Safety Act was brought in.

For large tech firms, keeping young users logged on is a priority. Nearly 70% of social media users aged between eight and 17 surveyed by regulator Ofcom said the apps helped them feel closer to their friends. And though social media networks are naturally coy about their dependence on younger customers, it’s safe to assume the love flows both ways. A 2023 study by Harvard researchers estimated that people under 18 generate at least 35% of U.S. ad revenues at TikTok and Snapchat – and 16% at Meta-owned Instagram.

Britain is not alone in wanting to police internet users’ ages. Five EU countries including France and Spain are in the early stages of testing an age-verification app to protect kids. Meanwhile, the U.S. states of North Carolina, California and Utah are working on age checks of their own.

VPNs might let young users bypass ID checkpoints, but they also obscure much of the personal information that makes them lucrative targets for advertisers. Meta has already restricted behavioural advertising, which involves collecting data on users’ actions across the web, for under-18s in Europe. Even so, widespread VPN use will make it harder to target users based on their location. In short, the age-appropriate internet may mean fewer kids on social media, while the ones that remain will be harder for advertisers to reach. Lobbyists working to oppose such restrictions have their work cut out.

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CONTEXT NEWS

Britain’s Online Safety Act, which was passed by the previous government in 2023, came into force on July 25. The legislation sets out tougher child protection standards for online platforms.

Sites and apps that host harmful content must now implement age verification checks. Regulator Ofcom has the power to fine noncompliant firms up to 18 million pounds or 10% of their qualifying worldwide revenue, or block their sites altogether.

(Editing by Peter Thal Larsen; Production by Oliver Taslic)

((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on JOHNSON/Jennifer.Johnson@thomsonreuters.com))