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    Instagram launches restrictive ‘teen accounts’ – here’s what you need to know

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    Topline

    Instagram on Tuesday announced restrictive privacy settings for younger users on the social media platform, including mandatory “teen accounts” and parental controls that limit what children can view, as the Meta-owned company faces criticism and accusations that it is failing to protect children on the app.

    Key Facts

    The accounts of all Instagram users under 18 will be made private by default and converted to “teen accounts” within 60 days in the US, UK, Canada and Australia, the company said.

    The new account type will include new privacy settings and restrictions, among other things: ‘Teen accounts’ will only be able to send messages to people they follow or are already connected to, they’ll be put into ‘sleep mode’ between 10pm and 7am to promote sleep, and they’ll have the app’s ‘most restrictive’ settings for viewing sensitive content.

    According to the company, any user aged 16 or 17 can change their settings, but anyone under 16 must have parental permission through the parent’s Instagram account.

    Parents also get new monitoring tools, including a feature that lets them see which accounts their kids are messaging, but they can’t view the messages.

    If a teen tries to get around the restrictions by changing their birthdate on the platform, Instagram says it will use artificial intelligence to “proactively find these teens” and place them in more restricted accounts.

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    Crucial quote

    Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri told the New York Times that the new changes are likely to hurt the app’s popularity among teens: “It will definitely hurt teen growth and engagement, and there are a lot of risks,” he said, adding that Instagram is “willing to take risks, to move us forward and make progress.”

    What to look out for

    According to Instagram, the new restrictions will go into effect in the EU later this year and globally from early next year.

    Main background

    Instagram has been pushing restrictions on younger users on the social media platform for years. The company previously proposed “Instagram Youth,” a version of the app aimed at kids under 13, but that plan was reportedly scrapped in 2021. That same year, Instagram said it would make new accounts for users under 16 private by default, while still allowing those users to switch to public accounts without permission. The social media platform already bans all users under 13 from using the app, and Instagram removes accounts of minors when it becomes aware of them.

    Tangent

    Instagram and its parent company Meta have come under scrutiny from lawmakers and parents in recent years over the effects of social media on children. More than 30 state attorneys general sued Meta in October, alleging the company exploited children on Instagram for profit and “profoundly altered the psychological and social realities” for younger Americans. The New Mexico attorney general’s office sued Meta in December, alleging the company created a “marketplace for predators” on Instagram and Facebook and failed to protect younger users from harmful content. At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing earlier this year, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologized to victims of sexual exploitation on social media platforms, saying, “No one should have to go through what your families have gone through.” Meta previously said it was developing technology and bolstering a task force focused on online safety on its platforms, adding that it took allegations about its policies “very seriously.”

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