Meta is introducing AI tools to Instagram to identify the ages of users and restrict teens from using adult accounts.
In a new blog post, Meta revealed the new tool as part of its growing expanse of tools for teen users of its platforms.
Instagram apparently already uses AI to determine the age of users, but now, Meta will expand its use of AI to proactively find teens on accounts that have adult birthdays. It will then use teen settings on these accounts, which include a variety of safety features intended to protect teens online and restrict their use of the social media platform.
The technology is not yet rolled out, but is being tested across the US. The tech giant says that in case their AI tool makes a mistake, it does provide users the ability to change their settings.
In conjunction with this tool testing, Meta will also send out notifications to parents who use Instagram with information on how they can have conversations with their teens on the importance of providing correct age information online
“The digital world continues to evolve and we have to evolve with it. That’s why it’s important that we work together with parents to make sure as many teens as possible have the protective settings that come with Teen Accounts,” Meta said in a blog post.
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The social media giant has released a litany of restrictions and tools in an attempt to transform the landscape of their app for underage users. This includes automatically sorting teen users into Teen Accounts, which restrict some of their settings around privacy, and more recently, blocks those under the age of 16 from posting ‘live’ content.





