New measures from Meta aim to protect users under 18 from harmful content, but some say the moves don’t go far enough to protect safety, mental health.
New Instagram restrictions aim to protect teens from harmful content and promote good mental health. Photo: ShutterstockEvery week, Talking Points gives you a worksheet to practise your reading comprehension with exercises about the story we’ve written
When Instagram unveiled its new Teen Accounts last month, some applauded the move.
Under the new protections introduced by Meta, Instagram’s parent company, the accounts of users under 18 are set to private by default. Users under 16 can only change that setting with parental permission.
Teen Accounts can only receive messages from those they are following or connected to. They also have the strictest settings in terms of content and blocking offensive words in comments and messages.
The rules have already been implemented in some places and will take effect in Hong Kong in January.
Claudia Loh from Po Leung Kuk Choi Kai Yau School said the changes meant the platform was taking responsibility: “These restrictions will be effective in protecting me and my peers, as we now have a private account which ensures a safe community of only people we know,” the 15-year-old said.
Another feature of Teen Accounts is a reminder to leave the platform after an hour’s use each day, which Claudia said would help teenagers “snap back to the present” and take a break from doomscrolling.
Meanwhile, Valerie Chiu from St Mary’s Canossian College appreciated how notifications would be turned off from 10pm to 7am: “When we hear a notification, we’re more likely to pick up our phones and get distracted by other things. Turning off notifications can help us avoid staying up late to scroll.”
However, Valerie doubted these measures alone would effectively protect teenagers because they depend on users telling the truth about their age.
“To be honest, if they want, they can get multiple accounts, some of which are visible to their parents and others that are not,” she said.
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Psychologist weighs in
Dr Andrew Stock, president of the Psychotherapy Society of Hong Kong, agreed that Teen Accounts were simply a starting point for younger users to better navigate and protect their online interactions.
The clinical psychologist pointed to research from the UK that showed that teenagers, especially girls between 11 and 13 and boys between 14 and 15, are more sensitive to the effects of social media. People in these age groups who spent more time on these platforms felt worse a year later.
Well-being features such as “quiet hours” encourage teens to have more regular sleep patterns, and usage reminders help them avoid “mindless scrolling,” he said.
In addition, the content restrictions and blocking of offensive words in comments and messages create a more controlled and secure environment for teens to interact with their friends.
However, Stock said these measures mostly served as guidelines. “Should they work as intended, they could help encourage healthy boundaries around online social interactions, which are an important part of most teens’ social life and well-being,” he said.
These regulations might push teenagers to look into alternative, less regulated platforms such as Discord. For this reason, Stock encouraged young users to be open with their parents about their social media use.
How parents can help
Claudia felt that parental involvement is necessary for online safety as teenagers may not know what is safe to view. In these cases, parents can provide guidance.
While some may view this as parental control or interference, Stock said these discussions can be helpful. “As a teen, you might hesitate to share what’s happening on social media with your parents. And you don’t need to share everything with them, but ... sometimes unsafe things happen online.”
“A team effort is best, where you decide together with your parents, or a trusted adult, what needs to be shared and when.”
Stock said teenagers can benefit from critical social media literacy skills such as understanding the repercussions of their online actions, protecting their personal information, understanding different privacy settings, and identifying and reporting cyberbullying.
“This will help young users use social media in a balanced and meaningful way to connect with friends, get help, and feel part of a community,” he said.
Ultimately, Instagram’s new policies may not make much difference.
“The American Psychological Association has clearly stated that policies will not protect youth unless technology companies are required to reduce the risks embedded within the platforms themselves,” Stock said.
In his opinion, if Instagram truly wants to protect teen privacy and mental health and safeguard them from inappropriate content, they must make fundamental changes to the way the platform works.
This means looking at things like the algorithms that decide what teens see and adjusting them to reduce the risks to their well-being.
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