Meta said Tuesday it was tightening content restrictions for teens on Instagram and Facebook as it faces increased scrutiny that its platforms are harmful to young people.
The changes come months after dozens of US states accused Meta of damaging the mental health of children and teens and misleading users about the safety of its platforms.
In a blog post, the company run by Mark Zuckerberg said it will now “restrict teens from seeing certain types of content across Facebook and Instagram even if it’s from friends or people they follow.”
This type of content would include content that discusses suicide or self-harm, as well as nudity or mentions of restricted goods, the company added.
Restricted goods on Instagram include tobacco products and weapons as well as alcohol, contraception, cosmetic procedures and weight loss programs, according to its website.
In addition, teens will now be defaulted into the most restricted settings on Instagram and Facebook, a policy that was in place for new users and that now will be expanded to existing users.
This will “make it more difficult for people to come across potentially sensitive content or accounts in places like Search and Explore,” the company said.
Meta also said that it will expand its policy of hiding results to searches related to suicide and self harm to include more terms.
Leaked internal research from Meta, including by the Wall Street Journal and whistle-blower Frances Haugen, has shown that the company was long aware of dangers its platforms have on the mental health for young people.
On the platforms, teens are defined as being under 18, based on the birth date they give when signing up.
Not enough. Outlaw social media for children under 18. Give them all flip phones with no data, so they can still contact parents and friends, and still be “tracked”. Flip phones would be a good “visual” for law enforcement. No one under 18 can purchase a smart phone.
With the method described in the article, all they have to do is lie about their birthday. Is MONEY so important to these multi-billion dollar companies that they just cannot get enough, regardless of their methods?
Is it okay to lie and deceive folks for money as long as somewhere along the way in some legaleese small, grey fine print hidden around 10,000 other words, it is considered legal ????
“YOU should have read the terms and condition and our privacy statement” BEFORE you were tricked in to giving us money.