MENLO PARK, Calif. — Facebook announced it's hoping to make the Instagram experience safer for the app's young users.
In a blog post Tuesday, the company said it wants users under the age of 16 to be able to keep up with friends and keep up with their interests without unwanted DMs and interaction with strangers.
Among the biggest changes going into effect include defaulting young people into private accounts that would make it harder for suspicious accounts to find them.
Other changes include:
- Accounts created Tuesday and beyond will default to a private account if the user is under 16. Facebook will still give users the choice to switch to a public account, however in recent research, it says eight of out 10 young people accepted private default settings during sign-up.
- Facebook has also developed new technology to help employees find accounts that show potentially suspicious behavior and stop those accounts from interacting with young people's accounts. By "suspicious," Facebook defines those accounts as "belonging to adults that may have recently been blocked or reported by a young person."
- Starting over the next few weeks, Facebook will only allow advertisers to target ads to people under 18 based on their age, gender and location. This means that previously available targeting options, like those based on interests or on their activity on other apps and websites, will no longer be available to advertisers, according to Facebook.
The newest changes to the Facebook-owned app with almost 1 billion active users per month come as the company faces ongoing criticism from experts who question if the changes are overseen by federal regulators and if Instagram is doing its part to make the younger users feel safe, USA Today reports.
Changes to the Instagram experience for teens are also in sync with groups and lawmakers calling for Facebook to stop a potential Instagram for Kids.
In March, Facebook confirmed a report by Buzzfeed News saying it is "exploring a parent-controlled experience" on Instagram, according to an AP report.
Fairplay is one of the organizations calling on Facebook to abandon plans to create an Instagram for children under the age of 13, stating, "Instagram is not safe or appropriate for young children, the research supports that."
However, Facebook says it is simply "exploring" Instagram for kids and would make efforts to protect children and would not show advertising on the platform.
Right now on the app, Instagram doesn't allow users under 13 to use the social media platform.
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