From CNET: Staying safe and mentally healthy while navigating social media can sometimes feel like walking a tightrope -- especially if you're a teenager.
Meta's latest overhaul of its privacy and safety tools, announced by the company Tuesday, is designed to ensure teens using its platforms are guaranteed a more age-appropriate experience, which should help better safeguard their wellbeing. The new updates will see Meta remove content related to topics such as self-harm and eating disorders from teens' Instagram and Facebook feeds. Teenagers will also be automatically assigned the strictest content control settings on both platforms, with additional search terms restricted on Instagram.
New notifications will regularly prompt teenagers to check their privacy settings to protect them from unwanted attention, including direct messages from strangers and offensive comments. With a single tap they'll be able to opt for Meta's recommended settings for teens, which will provide them with the most private experience.
Social media platforms have frequently come under fire in recent years for not doing enough to protect children and young people from being exposed to content that can be harmful to their mental health. In 2022, a coroner in the UK concluded that social media played a key role in the suicide of Molly Russell, a teenager who was known to have viewed extensive quantities of self-harm content on platforms including Instagram. This case, as well as others like it around the world, have forced social platforms to prioritize improving online safety for teenagers.
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