Apple expands Digital ID to enable age verification for Apple Accounts and services
Updated
Updated · 9to5Mac · Apr 24
Apple expands Digital ID to enable age verification for Apple Accounts and services
10 articles · Updated · 9to5Mac · Apr 24
Users can now use a Digital ID created with a U.S. passport in Apple Wallet to verify their age when creating Apple Accounts, updating software, or accessing 18+ Apple services on iPhone.
This update allows Digital ID as an approved age verification method, reducing the need to share more sensitive IDs like driver’s licenses or credit cards for Apple’s online services.
The move follows Apple’s recent OS-level age checks in iOS 26.4 and responds to increasing legislative and public pressure for stricter age verification on digital platforms, particularly to protect minors.
Will Apple’s digital age gate actually protect kids, or just create new privacy risks?
As governments mandate age checks, can new privacy tech prevent mass surveillance?
How will mandatory age checks reshape free speech and access to information online?
Is the global push for digital ID really about safety or ending online anonymity?
Will the EU's Digital Wallet model mean needing a digital passport to use the internet?
Could OS-level identity verification create the ultimate target for the world’s best hackers?