In the last several years, social media has developed enormously.. The number of users has increased geometrically and shows no indications of slowing down any time soon. According to a Statista analysis from September 2021, Facebook had 2.85 billion active users in that month alone. Because of this growth, social media has become a breeding ground for those with malevolent intentions. With a wide user base and changing demographics, hackers and fraudsters have an easier time obtaining and exploiting user information.
Age verification is a wonderful way to guarantee that underage accounts’ content and exposure are restricted. The bulk of social media networks have insufficient age limits, which has resulted in concerns about minors being exposed to improper information and users.
Identity Theft Prevention
Because there are no security checks in the virtual arena, creating and marketing bogus identities takes just as much effort as real ones. This has allowed intricate rackets and scamming networks to operate under these bogus identities, obtaining Personal Identifiable Information (PII) and exploiting it for monetary benefit.
Users under the right age range will not be visible to shady characters thanks to age verification. Before entering personal information into the system, users will be required to provide documentation evidence. Age verification services enable greater security and a more congenial environment on social media, devoid of shady individuals.
Alert on Influencers
Influencers are a new breed of celebrity. These are social media account holders with a large amount of followers and visibility. They have clout in opinion formation and frequently receive hefty endorsement deals from major corporations.
This identity is frequently imitated by fraudsters who gather phantom followers to demonstrate their popularity. Many times, an influencer joins forces with a company without thorough diligence in exchange for a hefty remuneration. As a result of the fraud, the followers and users are left with no money.
In 2020, influencers accounted for 55.39 percent of all internet fraud.
Scams may be avoided, and offenders can be stopped from preying on the unwary, with a complete age verification solution on board.
Preventing Financial Fraud
When it comes to financial fraud, there are no age restrictions. They existed prior to the internet era, but social media has provided a new playing field for fraudsters to mark and prey on their targets with impunity.
Scams and financial fraud occur in different shapes and sizes. They might take the shape of investment programmes or the introduction of new enterprises searching for seed money. The goal is to entice the user into providing personal financial information such as credit card numbers, PINs, and so on.
College students and newly hired people get pulled into such scams and become victims of financial fraud.It would be difficult for con artists to carry out such plans in the open and reach out to customers due to thorough online age verification checks backed up by documentary proof.
Take Action Against False Advertisements and Incentives
Social media marketing has evolved into the most sophisticated rendition of its forefathers. Its development and dependence on enormous amounts of data increase its effectiveness. It does not take a frequent social media user long to notice the explosion of adverts, particularly from well-known firms, all over the site.
According to the World Federation of Advertisers, ad fraud will reach $50 billion by 2025, making it the largest industry for organised crime.
Only accounts with actual legitimate users will be able to display adverts and do commerce with others after age verification online.
Combating False Job Offers and Scholarships
Age verification can also serve as an active deterrent to fraudulent job offers and scholarships on social media. Companies utilize these platforms as job boards to list new openings since they have a large user base. When bad actors enter the picture, acting as well-known firms in the virtual world, the situation becomes complicated.
Again, this resulted in personal identity theft, financial fraud, and a nasty experience for the user, who lost money and reputation in the process.
Users would be considerably safer from such invasions on their names and money if there are robust checks and entrance barriers in social media through document and age verification.
The Next Steps
The virtual world is regulated by the rule of the jungle, where anybody may ambush and grab valuable information while leaving no trace. Intelligent solutions can provide both industrial and compliance end-of-life verification. Social media networks may employ Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to implement an easy-to-use age verification system to validate the age of incoming members. This manner, businesses can protect consumers’ personal information as well as their integrity.
