Instagram, AI & Teens: Meta boosts safeguards for young users 🤖

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Since April 21, 2025, Meta’s platform has rolled out new measures to better monitor and manage teen accounts. Instagram is working with parents and integrating algorithms to automatically identify minors and activate the appropriate safety settings.

Informing Parents and Strengthening Age Vigilance 📲

Since the launch of Teen Accounts in 2024, more than 54 million teenagers around the world have been automatically placed into these safer accounts. These accounts come with stricter settings, including limited interaction with strangers, moderation of age-inappropriate content, and screen time management. A vast majority of teens aged 13 to 15 — around 97% — have chosen to keep these protection settings enabled.

To go even further, Instagram launched an information campaign for parents on April 21. They will now receive in-app notifications with tips on how to talk to their children about the real age they declare online. These messages include expert-backed recommendations, created in collaboration with child psychologists. Experts like Dr. Ann-Louise Lockhart contributed to these resources to promote healthy and constructive conversations between parents and teens.

AI to Detect Underage Users 🧠

Recognizing that not all parents can constantly monitor their children’s settings, Instagram is introducing an artificial intelligence system to support them. Currently in a testing phase in the United States, this system aims to detect accounts that likely belong to teenagers — even if they’ve entered a birth date suggesting they are adults. Accounts flagged by the system will be automatically switched to Teen Account settings.

Instagram notes that users can manually adjust their settings if they believe the AI has made a mistake. The company also emphasizes that this automated detection is based on reliable and carefully designed criteria.

A Broader Strategy for the Digital Age 🌐

Accurately understanding and verifying users’ real ages remains a widespread challenge in the digital space. Instagram continues its efforts to deliver safer, age-appropriate experiences for teens. The platform also highlights the critical role parents play in age verification — starting with app installation on mobile stores.

These new measures confirm Meta’s ambition to use technology to protect its youngest users. While technology keeps evolving, it alone cannot change young people’s mindset and online behavior.

What about you ?!
What do you think about using artificial intelligence to protect young people online? Like and share your thoughts in the comments 😊