Meta rolls out new changes for teen Instagram accounts

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Meta announced Tuesday they’ll now make all teens’ accounts private by default and enhance parental protections. Some accounts will start seeing the changes instantly.

Meta says their goal with the changes is to make Instagram safer for teens and children.

Meta says the changes address the most common concerns they get from parents. The company says the top concerns from parents are who teens are talking to, what they’re seeing, and whether their time is being well spent.

It’s a concern, Jameel Alayyan shares, especially when it comes to his teenage sister.

“There’s a lot of scary things on the internet,” Alayyan said, ”My biggest concern is degeneracy and specifically content that is explicit. My biggest concern is her coming across any sort of predator.”

Some other changes Meta unveiled include limited messaging and changes to what teens can see. They’ve also added a supervision feature.

Teens under 16 will now need a parent’s permission to change any of these built-in protections.

At 17, he says she’s already had grown men try to reach out to her on social media, so he thinks these changes on Instagram will be good.

”I think the more that we protect people the better the more we protect children,” Alayyan said. ”If we can give more control to the parents, allow the parents to choose, allow that free conversation.”

Meta says they are also adding a new parental supervision tool to give parents more of that control.

Alayyan thinks Meta and other social media companies need to make sure parents are aware of these features to ensure they create a safer space. But for now, he says it’s a step in the right direction.

“Any way that the platforms can protect the children would be a really good thing for the children,” Alayyan said.

These changes come after 33 states filed a lawsuit against Meta for their alleged role in harming kids’ mental health.

Copyright 2024 WSMV. All rights reserved.