New Tool Helps Protect Children from Unwanted Contacts on Social Media

In response to the growing number of incidents involving minors on social media, Meta has unveiled new safety tools for Instagram designed to prevent unwanted contact with underage users.

The newly introduced features focus on protecting teens from suspicious interactions. When a new direct message is initiated, teenage users will now receive in-app safety tips, including guidance on how to block or report unfamiliar or inappropriate accounts. In addition, Instagram will display the year the contacting account was created, giving teens an added clue to help identify fake or suspicious profiles.

Another feature enhances protections on adult-managed accounts that include photos of children. This applies to parents, agents, or talent managers who run profiles featuring children under 13. These accounts will automatically shift to stricter privacy settings and activate comment filters to limit inappropriate engagement.

Meta announced that the tools will begin rolling out globally in the coming months. They follow the success of previous safety notifications introduced last month, which prompted teens to block approximately one million accounts worldwide, according to company data.

These new efforts reflect Meta’s attempt to improve online safety for younger users amid increasing concern over the vulnerability of minors on platforms like Instagram.