Julius Okorie
A new feature aimed at protecting teens from offensive language and violence among other vices has been introduced by Instagram.
Meta, parent body and owners of facebook and Instagram made this known on Tuesday via blog post.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelMeta CEO Mark Zuckerberg who personally dished out the information said “We’re introducing Instagram Teen Accounts, so teens get built-in protections that limit who they’re messaging and what content they see. These are big changes to give parents confidence their teens are having safe experiences online”
According to the statement, all accounts of users under 18 will automatically switch to Instagram teen accounts, with privacy settings enabled by default.
With this update, teen accounts will only receive messages from individuals they follow or are already connected to.
The platform will also restrict “sensitive content,” including violent material and videos promoting cosmetic procedures, and will filter out offensive words and phrases from comments and direct message requests.
A new feature will notify teenagers to take a break from the app after 60 minutes of daily usage. Additionally, a “sleep mode” will automatically mute notifications between 10 pm and 7 am, sending auto-replies to messages, advising contacts to reach out during the daytime.
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Users under 16 will need parental consent to modify the default settings, while those aged 16 and 17 can disable these settings without parental approval.
Parents will also have access to tools allowing them to monitor their children’s activity and set limits on app usage.
The feature is expected to begin rolling out within 60 days in the UK, US, Canada, and Australia, with other countries receiving it by January.
Meta also announced that teen accounts will be introduced to its other social media platforms in 2025.
In January, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg apologised to parents at a Senate online child safety hearing, who said Instagram contributed to their children’s suicides or exploitation.
Some other parents believe that Instagram and indeed other social media engagements contribute to falling standard of education as most teens spend more time on social media than they spend on their studies.
Julius Okorie is Chief Sports and Entertainment Correspondent for Prime Business Africa. He began his journalism career with the Champion Newspaper and Sporting Champion and later moved on to Daily Independent and the Nation Newspapers. Okorie joined Prime Business Africa in 2024 bringing on board 20 years of experience in writing investigative news on Sports and Entertainment. His well researched and highly informative articles on Sports Business and general entertainment are followed by a wide range of audience.
