Today, Instagram introduced Teen Accounts, a new experience designed for teenagers and guided by parents. These accounts feature built-in protections that limit contact and content exposure, while also allowing teens to explore their interests. Teens under 16 will require parental permission to alter these settings.

"We know parents want to feel confident that their teens can use social media to connect with their friends and explore their interests, without having to worry about unsafe or inappropriate experiences," the company stated.

Teen Accounts come with several default protections: private accounts where teens must accept new followers, messaging restrictions limiting contact to people they follow, sensitive content controls, limited interactions, time limit reminders, and sleep mode between 10 PM and 7 AM.

Yvonne Johnson, President of the National PTA, remarked on the initiative: "Given that parents today are grappling with the benefits and challenges of the internet and digital media for their teens, our association applauds Meta for launching Instagram Teen Accounts."

Teens under 16 need parental permission for less protective settings. Parents can supervise changes via Instagram's parental supervision feature. Rachel Rodgers, PhD Associate Professor of Applied Psychology at Northeastern University noted: "Instagram Teen Accounts reflect the importance of tailoring teens’ online experiences to their developmental stages."

Additional features include insights into who teens are chatting with (without reading messages), setting daily usage limits, blocking usage during specific times, and viewing topics of interest.

To address age verification issues, Instagram is enhancing technology to identify teen users even if they list an adult birthday. This change aims to place them under Teen Account protections.

Dr. Megan Moreno from the SAMHSA-Funded AAP Center of Excellence on Social Media and Youth Mental Health emphasized: "It’s important that safety and privacy protections are the default settings."

The rollout begins immediately in several countries including the US, UK, Canada, Australia, with plans for global implementation by January next year. Lucy Thomas OAM from Project Rockit commented: "These updates offer a balanced approach... ensuring young people can engage meaningfully and safely."