Especean

Wellbeing - Middle School

Instagram Teen Accounts

In late September, there were some recent changes announced regarding social media, with particular regard to Instagram users under the age of 18.  In an ever-evolving online world, steps are being taken to ensure that young people can engage meaningfully and safely, fostering positive connections while still prioritising their protection.

 

As such, accounts will be placed into new “teen accounts” to allow parents/carers greater control over their activities. The change will apply to new teen users but will also be extended to existing accounts held by teenagers over the next few months. 

 

See below for in-depth details of the changes:

  • All teen accounts will be set to private, as a default. Followers who the user has not accepted cannot see their content or interact with them.
  • Teenage users will be automatically placed on the most restrictive setting for sensitive content, such as material promoting cosmetic procedures, and sexually explicit or violent content.
  • An anti-bullying feature will filter out offensive words or phrases in comments and direct messaging (DM) requests.
  • Teenage users will get notifications telling them to leave the app after 60 minutes each day.
  • "Sleep mode" will be turned on between 10:00 PM and 7:00 AM, which means no notifications overnight.

As parents/carers, you have an influential role to play in this. Below are steps on how you can get involved:

  • A new supervision feature will give parents/carers the ability to see who their teenager has messaged in the past seven days, but they will not be able to read messages.
  • Parents/carers can set hard time limits for daily usage. Once a teenager hits that limit, they will not be able to access the app.
  • Parents/carers can choose to block their teenagers from using Instagram at night, or specific time periods.
  • Parents/carers can view the topics their teenager has chosen in their content options.

So, should our Middle School students even have social media?

  • Both the physical age of your son and their level of maturity and resilience can affect their ability to have positive experiences on social media. 
  • Each social media site and app has its own criteria for minimum age requirements. Most require users to be at least 13 years of age before they can register.  

More broadly, this is a small step in terms of a larger push, which will hopefully see the Federal Government eventually introduce legislation this year to enforce a minimum age for access to social media and other relevant digital platforms. 

 

This will look to ensure our young men are better protected from online harms and you, as parents and carers are more supported to navigate the challenges social media brings to the lives of your sons.

 

Alexandros Sinadinos

Director of Middle School