Instagram is making changes to protect teenagers on its platform. The company announced that all users under 18 will be placed into private accounts by default. This means only approved followers can see their posts.
Today, we’re launching Instagram Teen Accounts, designed with automatic protections put in place for teens, including default privacy settings, time limits, and restrictions on who can message and interact with teens' posts.
— Nick Clegg (@nickclegg) September 17, 2024
The new “Teen Accounts” will also have other restrictions. Notifications will be turned off from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. to promote better sleep. Teens will be able to choose age-appropriate topics to see more of, like sports or animals.
NEW: Teens on Instagram are automatically being moved to more restricted + protective settings
This will change who can contact them, what content they see + how much time they spend online
Teens under 16 will need their parent’s permission to use less protective settings pic.twitter.com/8K4QPlmP9E
— Lia Haberman (@liahaberman) September 17, 2024
Parents who want to supervise their teen’s account will have new options. They can see who their child has messaged in the past week, but not the actual messages. They can also see which topics their teen views most.
Instagram introduces “Teen Accounts”, promising more “built-in protections”, from today in the UK, US, Canada and Oz.
Good to see major tech brands taking a similar approach to @EE by introducing safeguards that strengthen protections for kids online.
— Marc Allera (@MarcAllera) September 17, 2024
Teens over 16 can change some settings with a parent’s permission.
instagram enhances safety for teens
Younger teens need parental approval for any changes.
These updates are rolling out gradually. New sign-ups in the U.S., U.K., Australia and Canada will see the changes first. Then existing teen accounts will switch over in about a week.
The features will expand to other countries and Meta’s other apps later. Meta, Instagram’s parent company, knows some teens may lie about their age. To address this, they are exploring ways to verify ages, such as video selfies or ID uploads.
They are also using AI to identify potential underage users based on certain signals. The changes come as lawmakers examine how social media affects children. Instagram has faced pressure to do more to keep young users safe.
While some say the new features are a good start, concerns remain about the challenges of age verification and protecting minors online.
