According to Reuters, no less than 33 US states — including California and New York — sued Meta in the last year for misleading the public into believing that its social media platforms have no negative effects. In the meantime, multiple studies have proven that social media use (not limited to Meta's products alone, obviously) has a negative impact on most users, including adults, leading to increased anxiety and depression, as well as focus and learning issues. Sadly, these effects are stronger and more frequent in users aged below 18. Now, the time has come for Meta to finally start addressing these issues.
The introduction of "Teen Accounts" will be made in the next 60 days for Instagram accounts across the US, UK, Canada, and Australia, followed by the European Union countries later this year. Meta abandoned development of a teen-aimed Instagram app three years ago, but this year's bills known as The Kids Online Safety Act and The Children and Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act, which were adopted by the US Senate back in July, most likely prompted the tech giant to rethink that move.
In addition to the countries and regions mentioned earlier, it should be mentioned that teens all around the world who are using Instagram will have their accounts automatically converted to "Teen Accounts" in January. In addition to having their new accounts automatically set to private mode, the under-18s of Instagram will also be notified to close the app after using it for 60 minutes. A default sleep mode will silence notifications overnight. The default settings will only be changed with the help of a parent, but parents will also be able to monitor their kids' activities, including the accounts they interact with and the amount of in-app time they spend.
Depending on the area, some age limits might be different (for now, Meta said that users under 16 need a parent's permission to change the default settings, but in the European Union, that age limit will probably be 18). More details regarding this topic should surface in the coming months, as Meta will start applying these changes.
Although published in 2017, Guy P. Harrison's book Think Before You Like: Social Media's Effect on the Brain and the Tools You Need to Navigate Your Newsfeed is still relevant in 2024. It can be acquired in Kindle format for $17, paperback ($20.19), or spiral-bound shape (from $38.45).
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