Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Instagram and Facebook are putting more content restrictions in place for teenagers.
- The platforms will now automatically place teens under its most restrictive content control settings.
- Content on Feeds, Explore section, Posts, and Stories will be affected.
Meta is taking steps to make its platforms more age-appropriate for teenagers. After gathering guidance from experts, Instagram and Facebook will now automatically place teens on the most restrictive content control settings.
Meta gives an example of someone posting about their ongoing struggle with thoughts of self-harm. While the post may tell an important story, Instagram will now hide it from teenage users because it’s a complex topic and may not be suitable for all young people.
Instagram will also restrict search terms like “suicide,” “self-harm,” and “eating disorders” in search for teenagers. It will hide search results for such queries and redirect teens to help resources.
Other types of age-inappropriate content will also be removed from the Feeds and Stories that teens view on Instagram, even if it’s shared by someone they follow. Meta says it already removes such content from Reels and Explore feeds available to teens.
“We already apply this setting for new teens when they join Instagram and Facebook and are now expanding it to teens who are already using these apps,” Meta writes in a blog post.
These changes are rolling out to all Instagram and Facebook users under 18 and will be fully in place in the coming months.
