Staff Reports
Instagram is rolling out new tools and features to make the app safer for younger users and keep parents in the loop about what their kids are up to online.
Topping the suite of upgrades announced by Meta — Instagram’s parent company — is the new “Take A Break” feature, which debuted on the service in the U.S., U.K., Canada and Australia.
Take A Break, as the name portends, will suggest users take a break every now and then if they’ve been scrolling through the app for a while. It will also recommend users set reminders to take more breaks in the future and provide them with expert-backed tips to help them reflect and reset.
“I love ‘Take a Break’ because it gives young users better control over their experiences on Instagram. Because we know that agency — the power to make choices and take action — is vital to adolescent well-being and mental health,” said Anne Collier of The Net Safety Collaborative, an organization that educates the public on internet safety matters.
The new feature comes alongside continued efforts at Meta to boost safety on Instagram and its other online platforms.
Part of the safety push includes allowing parents and guardians to view how much time their teens spend on Instagram, set time limits, and learn strategies for discussing social media use with their teens through a new educational hub that includes product tutorials and tips from experts.
The platform will also stop other accounts from tagging or mentioning teens that don’t follow them and give younger users the option of giving their parents a heads up if they report someone, so the adults in their lives can flex the skills they learned on the educational hub.
Instagram has also retooled what topics it recommends to teens and — if it notices they’ve been dwelling on the same topic for a while — it will nudge them toward something else.
“We’re proud that our platform is a place where teens can spend time with the people they care about, explore their interests, and explore who they are. To ensure it stays that way we’ll continue doing research, consulting with experts, and testing new concepts to better serve teens and, most importantly, keep them safe,” Instagram head Adam Mosseri said.
