Richmond parent calls Instagram ‘Teen Accounts’ a step in the right direction

RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Instagram is putting the power in parents’ hands with new protections for teenagers.

On Tuesday, Sept. 17, Meta, the company which owns the social media app, introduced “Teen Accounts,” which will be required for all Instagram users under the age of 18, regardless of whether they have accounts that are already active.

Teens will have the power to choose the age-appropriate topics they want to see more of on the app, but teen accounts will be on “sleep mode” between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m. and users under 16 will need a parent’s permission to change their account settings.

Shannon Heady, a Richmond resident with two daughters, said the measure is a step in the right direction to safeguard kids from the dangers of the internet.

“It is scary being a parent of teens right now, because you have access to so many things,” Heady said. “I think giving parents tools that can help them monitor their kids is going to be something that’s helpful.”

Heady said she does not allow her daughters to access Instagram and believes that too much social media and be detrimental to a child’s development.

“They’re not, like, talking to a real human and getting that kind of interaction,” Heady said about children using social media to interact. “We think we’re exposing them to the world, but we’re actually limiting, like, real-world interactions.”

Heady said parents should take initiative and make an effort to monitor what their kids are up to.

“Even if we had all the parental controls in the world, you’ve got to engage with your kids and talk to them and know who they’re hanging out with and what they’re talking about,” Heady said.

New accounts created by users under 18 will be Teen Accounts starting Tuesday, while current users will see their accounts switch to the new Teen Accounts model within 60 days.

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