In a move to address mounting concerns about the safety of young users on its platform, Instagram has announced the introduction of ‘Teen Accounts.’ This initiative automatically enrolls teenagers into a more protected app experience, with stricter privacy settings and parental controls.
Starting immediately, all new and existing accounts held by teenagers will be transitioned into these Teen Accounts. In addition, Instagram is expanding its parental supervision features, giving parents greater oversight of their children’s online activities.
The changes follow intense scrutiny from lawmakers, who have criticized social media platforms for not doing enough to safeguard young users. Previously, even though Instagram offered built-in protections for teenagers, those users could opt out if their accounts weren’t supervised by a parent. Now, teenagers under 16 will need parental consent to bypass these safeguards, even if they don’t have a supervised account.
Teen Accounts limit who can contact a teenager and what content they can see. For instance, teens will only receive messages from people they follow or are already connected to, and will only be tagged or mentioned by those they follow.Additionally, the app will automatically filter out offensive language in their DMs and comments.
Furthermore, Instagram is taking a more proactive approach to tackle concerns about excessive screen time. Teenagers will now receive notifications to close the app after an hour of daily use, and Sleep Mode will be automatically enabled between 10 PM and 7 AM. During these hours, notifications will be muted, and auto-replies will be sent to any incoming messages.
The parental controls have also been upgraded. Parents or guardians can now see who their teen has messaged in the past week, though they cannot read the actual messages. This provides insight into who their teenager interacts with online,even without physical access to their device. Parents can also set daily time limits and block nighttime app usage altogether.
To address the issue of teenagers lying about their age during sign-up, Instagram is introducing new verification measures.If a teenager tries to create an account with an adult birthday, they’ll be required to verify their age with an ID or a selfie video. The platform is also working to identify existing accounts that belong to teenagers who may have provided false information.
These Teen Accounts are being rolled out gradually, with plans to reach all eligible users worldwide by January 2025.This initiative signals a significant step towards making social media a safer space for younger users and gives parents greater peace of mind. While the full impact of these changes remains to be seen, it’s clear that Instagram is taking the issue of teen safety seriously.
