Microsoft is adding a new system-level API to Windows 11 where apps can query users’ age. The feature, called Windows Age API, tells applications which age group the user falls into, rather than their exact date of birth.
The API divides users into five different age ranges: under 10, 10-12, 13-15, 16-17 and over 18. Applications can only ask two questions through this API: what age group the user is and whether this age information has been independently verified. In its statement on the subject, Microsoft states that the API provides “a privacy-preserving mechanism for applications to determine the age group and age verification status of the logged in user.”
Not every application can access this data; Microsoft’s Digital Safety platform pre-approves and authenticates applications that can call the API. Thus, it is aimed to prevent any application from arbitrarily requesting the user’s age. The verification status field also distinguishes between cases where the user self-reports their age and cases where the user has been independently verified.
According to Microsoft’s SDK documentation, the APIs are currently defined but not yet active at runtime; The company plans to enable the feature in a later version of this year. The move is a response to increasing pressure on child safety from regulators in the US, UK and European Union.
Uses include content filtering and age-restricted applications
Microsoft states that the API can be used in scenarios such as filtering user-generated content, social features, in-app purchases and access to age-restricted media content. The company has not yet announced the applications that will be the first to use the API.
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