Facebook introduces new tools to address the protection and privacy of teens

It seems like teenagers are not protected on social media platforms, particularly Facebook and Instagram. As recently we have noticed Meta facing a backlash from the government and regulators concerning the protection of teenagers. As of now, some measures have been taken by the Mark Zuckerberg-owned company to address the said issue.

Reportedly, the company is introducing more filters. These filters will be added to the People You May Know feature. Thus, limiting the visibility of the list of friends. Where new tools that will restrict the spread of unwanted intimated images will also be added.

The People You May Know is a feature that allows users to reconnect with long-lost friends. Given the updates, teens won’t be given the visibility of any ‘Suspicious’ account. A Suspicious account is one that has been reported by a young person. Currently, various features are in the testing phase. In the same scenario, the option for messaging teens on Instagram is soon going to disappear. It won’t be shown for those suspicious adults as well.

If any teenager messages an adult, a prompt screen will appear. The screen will show a question to the teens to know whether they know the person in real life or not. Afterward, a safety notice will appear. The safety notice will provide the users will several options that could be adopted in order to prevent further contact with this person.

Any new teen registering to Facebook will be presented with restricted options. These options need to be pre-selected on some privacy settings. It includes various options like people and pages they follow, who can see their friends list, who is allowed to comment on posts, and posts they’re tagged. The same settings will be rolled out to Instagram as well.

Meta said it is collaborating with National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). The idea behind the collaboration is the development of a platform for teens with a particular focus on their private images that might appear on social media without their approval. As of now, Facebook is at work with two associations to enable teens to destigmatize such images and go for help by taking control.

The features have started rolling out. Soon the updates will be available to all teens in full swing.