Meta introduces new safety measures for minors on Instagram, Facebook
Meta is taking steps to enhance the safety of young users on Instagram and Facebook Messenger. It is now limiting who can contact them and also giving their guardians more control over their children's security settings. Now, users under 16 (or under 18 in certain countries) will not receive messages or be added to group chats by strangers on these platforms by default.
Expanded parental supervision tools on Instagram
Parents will now have the ability to approve/deny their child's requests to modify safety and privacy settings on Instagram. This is a change from the previous system, where parents were only notified when changes occurred. This means that children can no longer switch their profiles from private to public without their parent's consent. Teens with supervised accounts will need permission from a parent or guardian to alter the default messaging settings.
Upcoming feature to protect users from inappropriate images
In addition to these changes, Meta is also working on a new feature to safeguard users from receiving unwanted or inappropriate pictures in messages from their existing connections. This feature will also discourage users from sending such content in the first place. While there is no set launch date, Meta has confirmed that this facility will function in encrypted chats, with more details to be shared later this year.
