A Meta said this Tuesday (9) that it would hide the most sensitive content from teenagers in Instagram e no Facebook amid global pressure from regulators for the social media giant to protect children from harmful content on its apps.
The change will make it more difficult for teenagers to find sensitive content, such as suicide, self-harm and eating disorders, when using features such as search and exploration on Instagram. By default, all teen accounts will be under the most restrictive content control settings on both apps, and additional search terms will be limited on Instagram.
We want teens to have safe, age-appropriate experiences on our apps. Today, we’re announcing additional protections focused on the types of content teens see on Instagram and Facebook, says Meta’s blog post.
According to the Meta blog, even if a teen follows a post on the account about sensitive topics, those posts will be removed from the account. feed of the teenager. The company said the measures, which are expected to be implemented in the coming weeks, would help provide a more age-appropriate experience.
Meta is under pressure in both the United States and Europe due to allegations that its apps are addictive and have helped fuel a youth mental health crisis. Attorneys general from 33 US states, including California and New York, sued the company in October, saying it repeatedly misled the public about the dangers of its platforms. In Europe, the European Commission sought information on how Meta protects children from illegal and harmful content.
The pressure followed testimony from a former Meta employee, Arturo Bejar, in the US Senate, who claimed that the company was aware of harassment and other harm faced by teenagers on its platforms, but did not act against them.
Bejar called on the company to make changes to the design of Facebook and Instagram to encourage users to adopt more positive behaviors and provide better tools for young people to manage unpleasant experiences, and said his own daughter received unwanted advances on Instagram, an issue he called out. attention of the company’s senior leadership. However, Meta ignored his pleas.
Children have long been an attractive demographic for companies, who hope to attract them as consumers at ages when they can be most impressionable and solidify brand loyalty. For Meta, which in recent years has faced fierce competition with TikTok by young users, teenagers can help attract more advertisers, who hope that children will continue to buy their products as they grow up.
*Cape photo: iStock
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