Instagram Unveils Changes To Improve Child Safety, Mental Health
The Meta-owned app will make accounts private for its users who are younger than 18. The company also will halt notifications during typical nighttime rest hours and limit sensitive content.
The New York Times:
Instagram, Facing Pressure Over Child Safety Online, Unveils Sweeping Changes
Instagram unveiled a sweeping overhaul on Tuesday to beef up privacy and limit social media’s intrusive effects for users who are younger than 18, as the app faces intensifying pressure over children’s safety online. Instagram said the accounts of users younger than 18 will be made private by default in the coming weeks, which means that only followers approved by an account-holder may see their posts. The app, owned by Meta, also plans to stop notifications to minors from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. to promote sleep. In addition, Instagram will introduce more supervision tools for adults, including a feature that allows parents to see the accounts that their teenager recently messaged. (Isaac and Singer, 9/17)
The New York Times:
Instagram Teen Accounts: What To Know About New Privacy Settings
Besides making all new and existing accounts private by default, Instagram said it would now stop teenagers from receiving Instagram notifications between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. The app will also limit sensitive content for minors, such as nudity or discussions about self-harm, and prevent direct messages from people they don’t follow — existing restrictions that the company had previously announced. (Singer, 9/17)
