Parents don’t always know what their teenagers are doing online, and while we try to teach them how to stay safe and protect themselves, we can’t help but worry. If they use social media, there’s even more to be concerned about, but Instagram is making a change to help keep moms and dads in the loop. The Meta-owned social platform will start notifying parents if their teen repeatedly tries to search for self-harm or suicide content.
Yesterday, the company announced that starting next week, those who use Instagram’s parental supervision tools will get a message - either a text, email or WhatsApp, and an in-app notification - if a teen repeatedly attempts to look up certain terms related to self-harm within a short time span. While the site says it already blocks users from searching this content, the alerts are designed to make sure parents know their teen is trying to look this up so they can help support them. The notifications will come with resources to help parents start sensitive conversations with their teens about mental health.
“The vast majority of teens do not try to search for suicide and self-harm content on Instagram, and when they do, our policy is to block these searches, instead directing them to resources and helplines that can offer support,” the company shared in the announcement. According to meta, the function will start rolling out in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Australia in the coming weeks, and to more countries later this year.
Source: CBS News
[Source: Dr. Dave Ultimate Prep]