Meta introduces restricted Instagram accounts for young Taiwanese
Meta 為台灣年輕人推出受限制的 Instagram 帳戶
| Meta says 'Teen Accounts' intended to make young users' experience safer
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Instagram launched a new feature in Taiwan on Tuesday that its parent company Meta said will protect teenage users. Meta said in a press release that it will automatically restrict some account features for Instagram’s under-17-year-old users in Taiwan. The company said the new “Teen Accounts” mean users in this category will need to accept new followers, and those who do not follow them will be unable to see what they post. The app will also increase restrictions on messaging and “sensitive content,” Meta said. It said Instagram will also notify users with teen accounts when they have used the app for over an hour per day and will automatically restrict notifications between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. Meta said sensitive content includes “people fighting” or promoting cosmetic procedures.” It also said it would restrict teenagers' ability to view content relating to suicide, self-harm, and eating disorders. Users will be able to remove these restrictions with their parent’s permission. Meta said that to remove the restrictions, teen users must first invite their parent's Instagram account to monitor their activity. A Singapore-based Meta spokesperson told Taiwan News on Wednesday the teen account update is being rolled out gradually in Taiwan and the feature may not yet be available to some users. They did not provide a timeframe for when the update would be completed. Meta said Instagram had 11.35 million users in Taiwan in early 2024, according to a DataReportal report. The company has not published user data for those in the 13-17 year old bracket. Meta announced Instagram teen accounts in September, stating that US, UK, Canada, and Australia-based users would receive the updates within two months. Those in the EU would get them before the end of last year, and other places would be in January, it said. The company said the updates would be applied to its other platforms this year. Meta also operates Facebook and Threads. |
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| Jono Thomson, Taiwan News, Staff Writer | |
| 2025-02-12 |
