Facebook plans to build a version of Instagram designed for children under the age of 13, making a kid-friendly version of the popular photo-sharing site and app amid concerns of a safe environment for younger users.
Facebook Plans To Build a Version of Instagram Just for Kids
An internal Instagram company post reveals that the Facebook-owned photo sharing app/site, which currently does not allow users under the age of thirteen, is planning on creating a version aimed at preteens.
Instagram is the fifth most popular social media platform in the world with 1.2 billion users worldwide as of January 2021, according to Statista. Instagram is owned by Facebook, which has 2.74 billion users worldwide.
According to reports, Instagram has a plan in the works to build a version of its popular photo sharing site/app specifically aimed at children under the age of 13, BuzzFeed reported, according to an internal Instagram company post.
“I’m excited to announce that going forward, we have identified youth work as a priority for Instagram and have added it to our H1 priority list,” wrote Instagram’s vice president of product, Vishal Shah, on an employee message board on Thursday. “We will be building a new youth pillar within the Community Product Group to focus on two things: (a) accelerating our integrity and privacy work to ensure the safest possible experience for teens and (b) building a version of Instagram that allows people under the age of 13 to safely use Instagram for the first time.”
Under current policies and terms of service, children under the age of thirteen are forbidden from using Instagram.
The company Instagram post indicated that one of its vice presidents, Pavni Diwanji, Instagram’s vice president of product. will lead the initiative. She Was hired by parent company Facebook in December and had previously worked at Google, where she oversaw the search giant’s children-focused products, including YouTube Kids.
The project will also be overseen by Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram.
Instagram Called Out Over Concerns About Child Safety on Its Platform
Only two days ago, Instagram acknowledged it needed to do more to protect children online. The company was criticized publicly over the abuse, bullying and predation teenagers face online when using the app.
In response, earlier this week, Instagram published a blog post entitled: “Continuing to Make Instagram Safer for the Youngest Members of Our Community” which addressed concerns.
In the post, while making no mention at the time of building a version for under-thirteen-year-old users, Instagram reminded everyone that its platform is designed for those 13 years of age and older.
“We require everyone to be at least 13 to use Instagram and have asked new users to provide their age when they sign up for an account for some time,” Instagram wrote in the post.
