As Safer Internet Day is marked, Meta is reiterating its commitment to helping young people feel safe on its platforms. With harmful content, exploitation and unwanted interactions being a major concern for young people online, Meta is working closely with experts in mental health, child psychology and digital literacy to build features and tools that foster responsible and safe online connections.
In a bid to make the internet safer for teens, Meta has taken several steps over the past year, including defaulting teens into more private settings at sign-up, removing more policy-violating content and making sensitive content more difficult to find. The platform has also introduced tools like “Take a Break” and “Nudges” to encourage teens to spend more meaningful time online and explore different topics.
Here are a few tips for teens to help them build positive online habits:
- Use the “Take a Break” and “Nudges” features to control how much time you spend on Instagram and explore different topics.
- Customise your Explore settings to hide content that you’re not interested in.
- Enable the “Hidden words” tool to automatically filter potentially offensive comments.
- Turn on two-factor authentication to protect your account.
Meta says that they’re committed to supporting parents and guardians in their role as digital guides for their teens. The recently launched Family Centre is an educational resource that provides insights and tips from leading experts in youth safety, privacy, and well-being. The Centre also offers parental controls that allow parents to monitor their teen’s activity on the platform and set daily usage limits, while preserving their privacy and autonomy.
Here are some tips for parents and guardians to get started:
- Have open and honest conversations with your teen about their online habits.
- Use open-ended questions to start conversations about what they enjoy online.
- Share your own experiences and talk about your online life.
- Be approachable and let your teen know that they can come to you with any issues.
Read more on Instagram’s Parents Guide.
