Apple to block underage users in S’pore from downloading apps rated 18+

SINGAPORE – Apple users in Singapore have been alerted to new measures that may require them to show that they are above 18 years old to download certain apps.

This comes a month before the

Singapore Government requires all major app stores

to block young users here from downloading apps not meant for their age.

“Starting Feb 24, 2026, Apple will block users in Australia, Brazil and Singapore from downloading apps rated 18+ unless they have been confirmed to be adults through reasonable methods,” said Apple in

a Feb 24 blog post to app developers.

“The App Store will perform this confirmation automatically.”

Apple did not respond to The Straits Times’ queries about what these methods are.

Developers can use Apple’s updated Declared Age Range Application Programming Interface to determine a user’s age range. But developers may have separate obligations to independently confirm that their app users are adults.

The blog notice comes a month before

the mandatory roll-out of new measures by app stores

to screen and prevent Singapore users aged below 18 from downloading apps meant for adults, such as dating apps or those with sexual content.

For instance, the Grand Theft Auto game and dating app Tinder have been given an age rating of 18+ on the Apple App Store due to the use of profanities, sexual content and mature themes.

The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) requires all major app store operators – Apple, Google, Huawei, Samsung and Microsoft – to have the protection in place by March 31, 2026, under its Code of Practice for Online Safety for App Distribution Services.

The new code aims to set guard rails at the gateway to apps which have come under fire for exposing children to all sorts of harmful content, including sexual and violent material and content linked to self-harm or cyberbullying.

With the responsibility pinned on app stores to manage app developers, the authorities have a single point of contact to 

crack down on problematic apps

that also contain, among other things, terrorism-related or child abuse material that children could be exposed to.

The new measures are an attempt to rein in app stores in a similar way to how social media platforms are required to provide restricted account settings and tools for parents to manage their children’s safety under Singapore’s Code of Practice for Online Safety, which took effect in 2023.

Rule flouters risk being fined up to $1 million or blocked under the Broadcasting Act, which was amended in 2023 to rein in social media platforms and app stores.

Google is the first to roll out its own set of measures

to verify the ages of users in Singapore of products such as Gemini, Google Maps, Google Play, Search and YouTube.

The measures, which kicked in earlier in February, include disabling the location timeline in Google Maps, restricting access to adult-only apps on Google Play, switching on SafeSearch filters by default and activating digital well-being tools on YouTube.

Using a machine learning model, Google estimates users’ ages based on signals already associated with their accounts, such as search activities and the categories of videos watched on YouTube.

ST has contacted Samsung, Microsoft and Huawei for more information on their plans to roll out age assurance measures.