Instagram, Meta’s widely used social media app, was ruled as unsafe for teens by Cybersecurity For Democracy at New York University and Northeastern University, the Molly Rose Foundation Fairplay and ParentsSOS on Thursday, Sept. 25.
A report compiled by the three organizations found that out of 53 of Instagram’s safety tools that were reviewed, only 8 worked to properly enforce social media safety. Features such as Instagram’s option to create a teen account have not stopped the app from exhibiting unfiltered posts. Instagram’s teen accounts include restrictions like the inability to message other accounts that teen users don’t follow and the inability to broadcast live videos. Despite this, the report called Meta’s attempts at resolving teen safety concerns ineffective.
“It would be better if Instagram was more filtered, because teens want to connect with their peers. They want to use Instagram for things like schools and clubs, to spread information, but it’s not very safe outside of that,” freshman Lidya Daniel said.
In addition to the unfiltered content that the app recommends, one of the latest features on Instagram includes the option for users to share their location with followers. The update has sparked new privacy concerns about location security, especially amongst teenage users.
“I don’t think anyone should know where I am,” senior Andrick Baker said, “especially if you have a lot of followers I think that’s personal.”
Meta defended on a blog post that Instagram’s location feature is optional and gives users the choice of whether they’d like to share their location or not but others disagree that teenage users of the app may not have the ability to make a rational decision regarding the feature.
“I think that when people are younger they don’t completely think logically about how something is going to play out,” English teacher Julia Krasko said, “Think of your dream job, or whatever your dream is in your future before making a decision, and make sure you don’t make a decision that harms the pathway to that dream.”
The continuous reports regarding security have made it important to users that harsher regulations are enforced.
“I feel scared because social media is supposed to be a fun and safe place where you can connect with your friends and all your family members,” sophomore Renee Cheung said, “but now with all of these concerns arising, should I keep using the app?”
