Meta-owned social media platform Instagram has introduced a new feature called “Teen Accounts” in India, designed to provide a safer and age-appropriate online experience for users under 16. This move is part of Meta’s ongoing efforts to enhance safety measures, strengthen content controls, and empower parents to oversee their children’s online activities.
Key Features of Instagram Teen Accounts
The newly launched Instagram Teen Accounts offer several features to ensure a secure digital environment for teenagers:
- Parental Supervision and Control
Parents can now monitor and control their children’s activities on Instagram. This includes setting daily usage limits and receiving reminders for their children to take breaks from the app. - Enhanced Privacy Settings
Teen Accounts are automatically set to private, requiring users under 18 to manually approve follower requests. This ensures that only trusted connections can interact with them. Additionally, non-followers cannot view or engage with their content, providing an added layer of privacy. - Restricted Interactions and Sensitive Content Control
To safeguard teenagers from inappropriate content, Instagram restricts exposure to sensitive material such as physical fights or cosmetic promotions. Moreover, only people the teen follows can tag or mention them. Offensive language in comments and direct messages is also filtered out.
Time Management and Addiction Prevention
To promote healthy screen time habits, Instagram will show reminders for teens to exit the app every hour. A Sleep Mode feature is also introduced, which automatically mutes notifications and disables messaging from 10 PM to 7 AM.
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Parental Supervision for Teens Over 16
Meta has announced that parents will soon be able to enable supervision for users over 16 years old. This includes monitoring recent conversations, setting daily time limits, and restricting app usage during specific hours.
Why Now? Legal Context and Future Implications
The launch of Teen Accounts in India comes at a time when global concerns about online safety for children are growing. Last year, Australia passed a law prohibiting social media access for children under 16. Although there are no similar legal restrictions in India, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act requires platforms to obtain verifiable parental consent for users under 18. Meta’s introduction of Teen Accounts in India indicates its proactive approach to aligning with these regulations.
Conclusion
With the rollout of Teen Accounts, Instagram aims to create a safer and more controlled environment for young users. By giving parents the tools to oversee their children’s online interactions, Meta continues to enhance its safety measures while adapting to evolving digital safety standards.
This feature is being introduced gradually, ensuring a seamless transition for users and their families.
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