Meta brings its “teen account” to Facebook and Messenger. Like on Instagram, the company will begin automatically moving young teens to new accounts that have mandatory parental controls and limit who they can send messages and interactions to.
The company first introduced the feature on Instagram There are now 54 million teenagers with more locked accounts. (Instagram requires teenagers between the ages of 13 and 15 to use a teenage account and has tools designed to capture people around the age group.) The accounts of teenagers on Facebook and Messenger will run similarly. Unless parents approve the lawsuit, teenagers will not be able to interact with unknown contacts or change certain privacy settings. Parents can also monitor their children’s screen time metrics and friend lists.
Meta has also added new security features to teen accounts on Instagram. With this change, teenagers under the age of 16 will need permission from their parents to start broadcasting in real time. The app will also prevent young teens from turning off nude protection – the ability to automatically blur images in direct messages containing “suspicious nudes” unless approved by parents.
These seem to be obvious safeguards (they are), but at least suggest that Meta closes a clear gap in teen-centric safety features. The company’s impact on its apps, especially Instagram, has been under scrutiny in recent years. There are dozens of states Suspected of causing harm to young users.
