Instagram recently introduced new “teen account” settings to better protect young users, making teen accounts private by default and limiting the content they can access. These changes come years after the “Facebook Papers” exposed the risks posed to young users. Under the new rules, teens under 18 will have their accounts set to private and restricted in terms of who can message or tag them.
Teens aged 16-17 can manually adjust these settings, but those aged 13-15 will need parental approval. Instagram is also encouraging parental supervision through its app, with new tools that allow parents to monitor their teen’s activity, set time limits, and control what content they see.
Other features include time limit reminders and “sleep mode,” which silences notifications from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. Instagram will begin rolling out these changes in select countries, including the U.S., U.K., Canada, and Australia.
Despite these efforts, Meta still faces challenges in verifying parental oversight and preventing teens from lying about their age. The company is developing AI tools to identify accounts that may be misrepresenting users’ ages.
These updates are part of Meta’s broader strategy to address concerns over teen safety, developed with input from safety experts, youth advisors, and feedback from teens and parents.
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