Google brings its age-assurance technology to Android developers worldwide

谷歌将向全球安卓开发者推广其年龄验证技术

Google is expanding its answer to Apple’s age-assurance tools with Wednesday’s news that it will bring its Play Signal API to users worldwide by the end of 2026. The technology, already available in Brazil, allows Android developers to identify younger users of their apps in order to provide safer, age-appropriate experiences. The expansion will initially bring the API to Australia and Canada by mid-August, before rolling out globally to all markets by the end of the year. Its arrival comes as lawmakers and regulators around the world are increasingly pressuring app stores to provide better protections for minors. Apple, for instance, launched its age-verification tools globally in February to comply with the growing number of age-verification laws.

谷歌周三宣布，将把其 Play Signal API 推向全球用户，以此作为对苹果年龄验证工具的回应。该技术目前已在巴西上线，允许安卓开发者识别应用中的低龄用户，从而提供更安全、适龄的使用体验。此次扩展将首先于 8 月中旬覆盖澳大利亚和加拿大，并计划在今年年底前推广至全球所有市场。此举正值全球立法者和监管机构不断向应用商店施压，要求其为未成年人提供更好保护之际。例如，苹果公司已于 2 月在全球范围内推出了其年龄验证工具，以符合日益增多的年龄验证法规。

Like Apple, Google’s technology allows developers to obtain a user’s age range without needing to access personal information, like their date of birth. Instead, it enables parents to share their child’s age range directly with apps. It also lets adults share their age when prompted by app developers as well, allowing for customized experiences. Parents won’t have to manage sharing this information on an app-by-app basis, either. To make it easier, Google centralizes these controls inside its parental controls dashboard, Family Link. Once entered, any developer that chooses to incorporate age-range information can access this signal to customize their apps accordingly. Google notes, however, that the age ranges are not shared by default — parents must opt in by entering that information.

与苹果类似，谷歌的这项技术允许开发者获取用户的年龄段，而无需访问出生日期等个人信息。相反，它使家长能够直接与应用共享孩子的年龄段。当应用开发者提示时，成年用户也可以选择共享自己的年龄，从而获得定制化的体验。家长无需针对每个应用单独管理这些信息。为了简化操作，谷歌将这些控制功能集中在其家长控制面板“Family Link”中。一旦输入信息，任何选择接入年龄段信息的开发者都可以获取该信号，并据此定制应用。不过，谷歌指出，年龄段信息不会默认共享，家长必须主动输入信息以进行授权。

The feature joins other safety tools on Google Play, including those that let developers restrict a child’s ability to discover their apps. Parents, meanwhile, can continue to use Google Play’s Family Link app to manage their child’s screen-time limits, approve app downloads, or set PIN-based content filters for specific apps.

该功能加入了 Google Play 的其他安全工具行列，包括允许开发者限制儿童发现其应用的功能。与此同时，家长可以继续使用 Google Play 的 Family Link 应用来管理孩子的屏幕使用时间限制、批准应用下载，或为特定应用设置基于 PIN 码的内容过滤器。