Meta prepares to restrict more content
In a statement from Meta, it was stated that they want young people to have safe and age-appropriate experiences on the applications.
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Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, has announced that it will begin hiding more types of content on its applications as part of new protections introduced to offer young people more age-appropriate experiences.
The statement noted that more than 30 tools and resources have been developed to support young people and their parents, and that over 10 years of work has been put into policies and technologies for content that violates rules or may be considered sensitive. It was reported that additional protections focusing on the types of content young people see on Instagram and Facebook have been introduced.
The statement emphasized that they regularly consult with experts in adolescent development, psychology, and mental health to help make the platforms safe and age-appropriate for young people.
The statement conveyed that when users post content related to their struggles with "self-harm" or "eating disorders," they will continue to be directed to resources from relevant expert organizations. It was reported that finding such content is being made more difficult, and that results appearing when users search for related terms have begun to be hidden.
The statement indicated that these changes have begun to be rolled out to young people under the age of 18, and noted that they will be fully effective on Instagram and Facebook in the coming months.
SETTINGS UPDATED
The statement reported that young people are automatically placed in the most restrictive content control setting on Instagram and Facebook, and stated that this setting, which was already applied to young people newly joining Instagram and Facebook, has been expanded to include young people already using the applications.
The statement emphasized that content recommendation controls on the applications will make it harder for users to encounter potentially sensitive content or accounts in places like "search" and "explore."
The statement announced that these updates will be opened to all users in the coming weeks.