Windows 11 to share users’ ages with installed apps

Windows 11 is preparing to take on a job that apps and online services have largely handled until now, most of it badly: working out whether a user falls into the right age bracket.

Instead of asking people to type a birth date or tick an “I am 18+” box, Microsoft plans to let compatible apps request a broad age range and an age-verification status.

Age verification has long been left to self-reporting across much of the tech sector. It’s easy to see why that safeguard is weak: a kid can enter a false date and that’s all it takes.

Microsoft’s proposed approach aims to give apps a more useful answer without passing along a birthday.

Key takeaways

• Windows 11 age APIs are available to Windows Insiders, which means they will reach all Windows users soon
• Apps can receive an age bracket and a verification status, not a user’s precise age or date of birth
• The brackets are under 10, 10–12, 13–15, 16–17 and 18+
• Apps need the appropriate account-information capability, and the user’s Windows privacy settings can deny access
• The feature can support safer experiences for children, but it shouldn’t become a reason for apps to collect more data than they need

A system-level answer to a familiar problem

Age gates are everywhere: a game may restrict chats or purchases, a streaming service may hide content from children and social platforms may need to limit features for younger users. For now and in many cases, the test is usually little more than a date-of-birth field.

The key distinction is that Windows isn’t set to broadcast the user's exact age. Microsoft’s documentation describes privacy-preserving signals: categories such as 13–15 or 18+, plus an indication of whether the age has been verified.

That could make it easier for games, social apps and media services to offer age-appropriate content. Unfortunately, it also raises fair questions about which apps can ask, what users can control and whether the system is used responsibly.

Microsoft is trying to move that decision closer to the operating system. The company’s Windows Age APIs allow an app to ask for two limited signals for the person currently using Windows:

1. Which age range applies?
2. Is the user’s age verified, unverified, unavailable or opted out?

Microsoft says the APIs are designed to let developers adapt content, features and access controls while avoiding disclosure of an exact age or date of birth. The documentation says the APIs are currently broadly available to Windows Insiders and will soon be available to all Windows users.

What an app could rand shouldn’t receive

The separate verification-status API can return Verified, Unverified, OptedOut, TemporarilyUnavailable or NotApplicable. That matters because an age range and independently verified age aren’t the same thing.

Just as important is what the feature doesn’t reveal. Windows doesn’t return a birth date or a precise age. A service that needs to know whether someone is old enough to use an 18+ feature shouldn’t need to learn whether that person is 19, 44 or 79.

Privacy protections are useful, but they need to work in practice

This approach has a sensible privacy principle—to disclose the smallest useful fact. An app deciding whether to show adult-rated content normally needs an age threshold, not a birthday. Reducing the number of services that store dates of birth could also minimize the consequences when one of them suffers a data breach.

Microsoft says an app package must declare the userAccountInformation capability, and access is subject to the user allowing apps to access account information in Windows privacy settings. If access is denied, the request can fail.

Developers must also use a fallback experience when a signal is unavailable; they musn’t treat an unknown result as proof that someone belongs to a particular age group.

At launch, Microsoft’s documentation says it retrieves age signals from identity providers only for Microsoft accounts. For other account types, Windows may return no age range or indicate that verification doesn’t apply, unless an organization has configured a default through management policy.

Why this could help families

For parents, the feature isn’t perfect protection. A game with user-generated content could use an age bracket when deciding which social features to offer. A media app could adjust maturity-rated recommendations. A service selling virtual currency could apply extra checks before purchases. These are just a few of the use cases Microsoft explicitly identifies for the APIs.

Children could still encounter inappropriate content through friends, browsers, or services that don’t use these signals. Family settings, device-level controls and clear rules about chat, downloads and in-game spending remain important.

For more practical guidance, see Bitdefender’s parental-control resources.

How to prepare for Windows 11 age signals

Keep the Windows account details accurate, use a child account and Microsoft Family Safety where appropriate, and review which apps have access to account information.

When a new app asks for permission, consider whether the request matches what the app actually does. A puzzle game that asks for an age signal to apply child-safety settings is easier to explain than an unrelated utility asking for extensive identity information.

Most importantly, treat age verification as just one layer of protection. Use unique passwords, multi-factor authentication and reputable security software alongside parental controls. Bitdefender Total Security can help protect the devices your family uses while you manage the privacy choices around them.

FAQ: Windows 11 age signals

Will Windows 11 tell apps my birthday?

No. Microsoft says the APIs return a broad age range and verification status, not an exact age or date of birth.

Which age groups can Windows 11 share with apps?

The categories are under 10, 10–12, 13–15, 16–17 and 18+.

Can every Windows app see my age range?

No. Apps must declare the relevant account-information capability, and user privacy settings can prevent access.

Is an age range the same as verified age?

No. Windows treats the age bracket and verification status as separate signals. An app may receive a range even when the status is unverified.

When will the feature arrive?

Microsoft says the APIs are broadly available to Windows Insiders now and will come to all Windows users soon.