Twitter adopting new age screening feature

CINCINNATI - Next time you follow a brand on Twitter, you may be asked to verify your age.

Twitter has now developed a system for obtaining the ages of followers. This is especially important when it comes to following alcohol brands.

Officials at Twitter say they’ve been working with the social media management firm Buddy Media to come up with a way to verify that followers are of the legal drinking age.

Brands like Jack Daniels, MillerCoors and Jim Beam’s Skinny Girl have tested the system in the past month.

The feature works similarly to the standard website age verification system used for liquor brands websites, but using Twitter's messaging features.

When a user clicks to follow a brand, that user will receive a direct message asking them to affirm their age.

The message links to a form on the brand’s Twitter page that requires the user to submit their date of birth and agree to Twitter’s privacy terms.

Critics say this age verification feature is anther way for advertisers to target users based on their age.  That’s because the privacy terms include this clause:

“We may also share aggregate or anonymous age data with third parties for marketing purposes in accordance with our [Twitter's] privacy policy. For example, we may identify the number of users within an age range that follow a specific account or types of accounts. By submitting your age information you agree to the sharing of your information as described above.”

If your company would like to use the new age screening feature, you can register at age.twitter.com  to submit your brand for approval.