Virkkunen said the Commission will also establish a European co-ordination mechanism to ensure consistency as member states implement their own national age verification schemes, which currently vary significantly in approach and minimum age thresholds.

The app arrives as at least a dozen European countries, including the UK and Norway, have enacted or are actively considering legislation setting minimum age limits for social media, typically between 13 and 16 years.

Part of a global lobbying effort as Canada’s governing party, the Liberal Party of Canada, is also discussing age verification simultaneously, as are a number of US states.