Meta is rolling out new safety features for teen users on Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger in an effort to give parents more peace of mind and limit teens’ exposure to inappropriate content. The company announced on Tuesday (June 2) that these expanded protections will restrict what teens see and who can contact them across its most popular platforms.

According to Meta, teens aged 13 to 17 will be automatically placed into “Teen Accounts” that enforce stricter privacy and content controls. These settings limit the appearance of sensitive material in feeds, Reels, and Messenger, and restrict interactions with accounts that frequently post inappropriate content. Teens under 16 will need parental permission to change certain settings, such as turning off image blurring for suspected nudity in private messages or going live on Instagram.

Meta began offering similar protections on Instagram last year and is now expanding them to Facebook and Messenger. The company says 97% of users aged 13–15 remain within these built-in restrictions. Features include private accounts by default, notifications encouraging teens to log off after 60 minutes, and settings that block direct messages from adults teens don’t follow. Parents can also set daily time limits and monitor their child’s activity through supervision tools. These updates will be available to users in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada first, with more regions to follow.

The move comes as lawmakers, regulators, and safety experts scrutinize tech companies’ efforts to protect young users. In a recent advisory, the U.S. Surgeon General warned of risks such as harmful content and cyberbullying on social media. Some experts are concerned that Meta’s protections do not completely address the possibility of teens creating accounts with fake ages or managing secret profiles.

Meta responded that adults cannot send direct message requests to teens who do not follow them, and that it is refining how teen profiles are presented to others. The company also plans to use age-prediction technology to place more users into protected accounts, even if they attempt to bypass age checks. For parents and schools, Meta is offering new resources such as the School Partnership Program, which gives educators tools to report harmful content and receive expedited reviews, as outlined by WTOP.

While Meta says feedback from parents has been positive and that the number of teens exposed to sensitive content is decreasing, critics report that some safety tools are ineffective or no longer available. Meta acknowledged that “no system is perfect,” but stated it will continue to improve the safety and privacy of its teen users as these updates roll out over the coming months.

Jeffrey T. Mason