Meta is introducing Teen Accounts to Facebook and Messenger. The feature, which automatically enrolls young users into an app experience with built-in protections, will be available on these platforms in the U.S., U.K., Australia, and Canada before expanding to additional regions in the future.
Teen Accounts first rolled out to Instagram last September after Instagram and other popular social networks were grilled by U.S. lawmakers for not doing enough to protect teens. As part of Tuesday’s announcement, Meta said it’s bringing new built-in protections for Teen Accounts on Instagram.
With the expansion to Facebook and Messengers, teens will automatically be placed into an experience that is designed to limit inappropriate content and unwanted contact. Teens under the age of 16 need their parents’ permission to change any of the settings.
While Meta’s blog post about the launch doesn’t share the exact restrictions that teens will be placed under, the company told TechCrunch in an email that teens will only receive messages from people they follow or have messaged before.
In addition, only teens’ friends can see and reply to their stories. Tags, Mentions, and comments will also be limited to people they follow or who are their friends.
Teens will also receive reminders to leave the social networks after using them for an hour a day. Plus, they will be enrolled into “Quiet mode” overnight.
As for the new restrictions on Instagram, teens under 16 will not be allowed to go live on the platform unless their parents give them permission to do so. Plus, teens under 16 will need to get parental permission to turn off the app’s feature that blurs images containing suspected nudity in DMs.
The changes announced on Tuesday demonstrate Meta’s latest step toward addressing teen mental health concerns tied to social media. These concerns have been raised by the U.S. Surgeon General and several states, some of which have even begun restricting teens from using social media without a parent’s consent.
Meta has shared some insight into how Teen Accounts are doing on Instagram, as the company says it has moved 54 million teens into Teen Accounts. Meta says there are still many more to go, as the feature continues to roll out globally. The company also shared that 97% of teens ages 13-15 keep their built-in protections on, Meta says.
Meta also commissioned a study conducted by Ipsos that found that nearly all parents surveyed (94%) say Teen Accounts are helpful for parents, and 85% think they make it easier to help their teens have positive experiences on Instagram.
