Instagram will now automatically default new accounts to private for users who are 16 years and below. Existing user accounts within the age group will be receiving a notification prompt about the benefits of having an Instagram private account and how to change their privacy settings.
Instagram revealed that this would help children on the platform against unwanted DMs and prevent public users to view their posts, Stories and Reels:
“Creating an experience on Instagram that’s safe and private for young people, but also fun comes with competing challenges. We want them to easily make new friends and keep up with their family, but we don’t want them to deal with unwanted DMs or comments from strangers. We think private accounts are the right choice for young people, but we recognize some young creators might want to have public accounts to build a following.”
Moreover, Instagram is currently in the works of developing a new technology to detect suspicious account behavior and prevent these accounts from viewing young people’s accounts. This feature will initially be released across US, Australia, France, the UK and Japan, and eventually to additional countries:
“By “potentially suspicious behavior”, we mean accounts belonging to adults that may have recently been blocked or reported by a young person for example. Using this technology, now we won’t show young people’s accounts in Explore, Reels or ‘Accounts Suggested For You’ to these adults. If they find young people’s accounts by searching for their usernames, they won’t be able to follow them. They also won’t be able to see comments from young people on other people’s posts, nor will they be able to leave comments on young people’s posts.”
We’re also using new technology to find adult accounts that teens might not want to hear from, and stop them from finding and interacting with teens.
— Instagram Comms (@InstagramComms) July 27, 2021