Meta Expands Teen Safety Features Across Its Platforms
Meta has introduced new teen safety tools to help parents monitor their children’s social media activity. The update covers Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and Horizon. In addition, the company plans to improve age verification systems.
The new tools arrive as governments and safety groups push for stronger online protection for young users. Therefore, Meta hopes these changes will reduce harmful experiences for teens online.
One major update focuses on age checks. Meta will now use artificial intelligence to estimate a user’s age. The system studies photos, videos, captions, and profile activity. For example, it may look for clues about school grades or birthday celebrations.
If Meta believes a user is under 13, the platform may remove the account. However, experts say teens could still avoid these checks by changing their content or profile details.
Meta also introduced a faster way to report underage accounts. Both AI systems and human reviewers will examine reports. As a result, the company says it can respond more quickly and accurately.
Family Centre Gives Parents More Oversight
Meta’s updated “Family Centre” brings parental controls into one dashboard. Parents can monitor interests their teens follow online, including beauty, sports, and photography.
However, teens must approve supervision requests before parents can access these tools. This means young users still control part of their online privacy.
Experts believe parental involvement remains important. A recent study linked heavy social media use with negative body image in teenagers. Therefore, parents may need regular discussions with their children about online content.
Still, digital safety tools do not always guarantee better outcomes. Some studies show safety controls reduce risks like cyberbullying. Others suggest they may increase family conflict instead.
