Instagram makes teen accounts private as pressure mounts on the app to protect children

AP Technology Writer

Instagram is introducing separate teen accounts for those under 18 as it tries to make the platform safer for children amid growing backlash against how social media affects young people’s lives. The teen accounts will be private by default. Messages are restricted so teens can only get them from people they follow or are already connected to. “Sensitive content,” such as videos of people fighting or those promoting cosmetic procedures, will be limited, Meta said. They will get notifications if they are on Instagram for more than 60 minutes and a “sleep mode” will be enabled that turns off notifications and send auto-replies to direct messages from 10 p.m. until 7 a.m.