Parents can keep watch on Insta kids

AUSTRALIAN parents will be able to cast a close eye over their child’s Instagram account under new rules being rolled out by Meta.

The move arrives several months after the Facebook parent company announced it had paused the development of an Instagram for children, a social media app it had been designing for users under the age of 13.

Australian parents from today will be notified by Instagram when an account follows their child, when their child follows another account and when their child reports an account. Parents will also be able to see how much time their children spend on the app and install time limits.

The rollout of the new supervision tools, which US parents began using in March, arrives as ReachOut reported more than a third – 36 per cent – of parents feel helpless when it comes to keeping their children safe online, with a further 32 per cent unsure what safety controls are available.

Facebook ANZ policy director Mia Garlick said Meta did “recognise” its responsibility to protect young users on its social media platforms.

“Our intention for these resources is to strike the right balance for young people’s desire for some autonomy when using Instagram, but also allows for supervision in a way that supports conversations between parents and young people when it is helpful,” she said. “Their safety is of paramount importance to us, and we want them to have an experience that is both fun and safe, and we want to support their parents to assist them in doing this.”

The new parental supervision tools will only be put in place if the child approves.

While parents will need an Instagram account to access the new tools, Meta is developing a central “family centre” platform in which parents will be able to supervise their child’s activity across all Metaowned platforms.

In a blog post, Meta said teens and their parents were often at odds over online safety but a “zero tolerance” approach from parents hindered trust building.