OpenAI developing age verification system for under 18 ChatGPT users are automatically directed to age-appropriate content
Where ChatGPT is not confident about a user’s age, users will be directed toward the under-18 experience as the LLM’s default. OpenAI says in some countries ChatGPT will ask users for an ID.
The development comes shortly after OpenAI added parental controls for teenage users, and adds the capacity to add “blackout hours” set by parents to prevent a child using ChatGPT during set periods.
OpenAI previously announced plans to introduce parental controls “within the next month” and a number of other safety measures, following a lawsuit filed by parents in the US after the death of their teenage son. The case alleges ChatGPT validated the teenager’s suicidal thoughts and discouraged him from talking to his parents.
In a blog post, OpenAI’s CEO Sam Altman explains: “We prioritize safety ahead of privacy and freedom for teens; this is a new and powerful technology, and we believe minors need significant protection.”
Altman’s blog post adds that OpenAI will attempt to contact a user’s parents if they are experiencing suicidal ideation and will contact authorities in cases of potential imminent harm.
“We realize that these principles are in conflict and not everyone will agree with how we are resolving that conflict,” Altman adds. “These are difficult decisions, but after talking with experts, this is what we think is best and want to be transparent in our intentions.”
The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available in the US on 988, 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741. In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or by email at jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. International helplines can be found at befrienders.org.
