ParentsSOS Statement on Meta Announcing “Teen Accounts” Feature on Instagram
(WASHINGTON, D.C., September 17, 2024) – Parents for Safe Online Spaces (ParentsSOS), an educational initiative formed by bereaved families to combat online harms, issued a statement today in response to Meta launching “teen accounts” with restrictive privacy controls for users aged 13-15 on Instagram ahead of a critical committee markup of the Kids Online Safety Act in the House tomorrow.
“Default private accounts for minors and turning off notifications in the middle of the night are safeguards Meta should have implemented years ago. We hope lawmakers will not be fooled by this attempt to forestall legislation,” said ParentsSOS co-founder Josh Golin. “The Kids Online Safety Act will require companies like Meta to ensure their platforms are safe and privacy-protective for young people at all times, not just when it’s politically expedient.”
Meta announced today that it will roll out teen accounts for new user sign-ups from teenagers starting September 17. However, the company says that existing accounts created by teenagers will be rolled over in the coming months. The Kids Online Safety Act aims to enact common-sense guard rails and mandate platforms to assume a “duty of care” in their design practices that encourage screen addiction and serve harmful content to minors.
KOSA outlines protections for children from specific harms that can result from the use of online social media platforms. Those include eating disorders, substance use, depression, anxiety, suicidal behaviors, physical violence, sexual exploitation, and the marketing of narcotics, tobacco, gambling and alcohol. Information and images about these topics are pervasive on social media. Instagram alone is home to 90,000 pro-eating disorder content creators reaching 20 million followers. This mental health crisis has gone well beyond minor product updates from Big Tech companies like Meta.
ParentsSOS will continue to provide educational resources and advocate for legislative change to protect children online. For more information about ParentsSOS and their mission, visit www.parentssos.org.
