Instagram Implements Stricter Browsing Restrictions for Teen Accounts, to be Extended to Facebook in Taiwan
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has designed "Teen Accounts" for Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger with built-in, age-appropriate protections by default. Meta announced today that if parents wish to set a stricter browsing experience for their children on Instagram, they can choose the "Restricted Content" setting which provides additional control. This feature will also be launched on Facebook in Taiwan in the coming months.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 15, 2026 at 13:17
- 🔍 Collected: May 15, 2026 at 13:32 (15 min after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: May 15, 2026 at 14:44 (1h 11m after Collected)
(CNA, Taipei, 15th, Reporter Wu Chia-hao) Meta, the parent company of Facebook, has designed "Teen Accounts" for Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger with built-in, age-appropriate protections by default. Meta announced today that if parents wish to set a stricter browsing experience for their children on Instagram, they can choose the "Restricted Content" setting which provides additional control. This feature will also be launched on Facebook in Taiwan in the coming months.
Meta has long promoted various youth protection mechanisms and provided parents with various tools and resources. Today, it held the "Age-Appropriate Protection, Safe Exploration: Jointly Protecting Youth Online Safety" event, inviting the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Digital Affairs, the National Communications Commission (NCC), the iWIN Web Content Protection Institute, and the Taiwan C-Watch Association, which has long been involved in child and youth services, to help parents understand and make good use of the platform's built-in age-appropriate protection measures.
Philip Chua, General Manager of Product Public Policy for Meta in the Asia-Pacific region, stated at the event that Teen Accounts are the result of Meta's years of work in the field of online safety. Based on feedback from consultations with parents and teenagers, they address the three major concerns parents have about their children using social media platforms: whether they can interact safely, whether their usage time can be managed, and what content they see online.
He said that for users under 18, the account settings on Meta's platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and Messenger, are defaulted to the strictest level, increasing parents' peace of mind and sense of security, and reducing the burden of direct parental intervention.
Chua further pointed out that the settings for Teen Accounts include privacy enhancement, time management mechanisms, and content rating controls, ensuring that teenagers are only exposed to content suitable for those aged 13 and above. This provides a more consistent safety experience, giving parents more confidence in their teenagers' status on Meta platforms.
Regarding how to manage teenagers' time on social media, Chua said that Teen Accounts currently have two related settings: a platform reminder will be sent after 60 minutes of use, and a sleep mode that silences all notifications from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. to reduce nighttime disturbances.
Chua stated that in the future, Meta will collaborate with parent-child creators in Taiwan to produce Reels short videos, encouraging parents to further understand the parental supervision and youth safety features in Teen Accounts. Meta will also cooperate with iWIN to launch an educational tour across Taiwan during the summer vacation to help parents and children start meaningful conversations about internet use and to raise public awareness of online safety.
When asked by the media about the connection between Meta's strengthening of Teen Account settings and the EU's "Digital Services Act" and Australia's child protection regulations, Chua responded that Meta had proactively launched Teen Accounts before local legislation was enacted. He said Meta's concern about social media bans is that they create a "false sense of security." Taking Australia as an example, Meta observed that after the social media ban took effect, teenagers began to switch to smaller social media platforms where safety measures were not as robust as those on larger platforms, potentially bringing greater risks.
He emphasized that Meta has always advocated for and encouraged the industry to improve online safety measures while ensuring that applications have age-appropriate thresholds. (Editor: Yang Kai-hsiang) 1150515
Meta has long promoted various youth protection mechanisms and provided parents with various tools and resources. Today, it held the "Age-Appropriate Protection, Safe Exploration: Jointly Protecting Youth Online Safety" event, inviting the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Digital Affairs, the National Communications Commission (NCC), the iWIN Web Content Protection Institute, and the Taiwan C-Watch Association, which has long been involved in child and youth services, to help parents understand and make good use of the platform's built-in age-appropriate protection measures.
Philip Chua, General Manager of Product Public Policy for Meta in the Asia-Pacific region, stated at the event that Teen Accounts are the result of Meta's years of work in the field of online safety. Based on feedback from consultations with parents and teenagers, they address the three major concerns parents have about their children using social media platforms: whether they can interact safely, whether their usage time can be managed, and what content they see online.
He said that for users under 18, the account settings on Meta's platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and Messenger, are defaulted to the strictest level, increasing parents' peace of mind and sense of security, and reducing the burden of direct parental intervention.
Chua further pointed out that the settings for Teen Accounts include privacy enhancement, time management mechanisms, and content rating controls, ensuring that teenagers are only exposed to content suitable for those aged 13 and above. This provides a more consistent safety experience, giving parents more confidence in their teenagers' status on Meta platforms.
Regarding how to manage teenagers' time on social media, Chua said that Teen Accounts currently have two related settings: a platform reminder will be sent after 60 minutes of use, and a sleep mode that silences all notifications from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. to reduce nighttime disturbances.
Chua stated that in the future, Meta will collaborate with parent-child creators in Taiwan to produce Reels short videos, encouraging parents to further understand the parental supervision and youth safety features in Teen Accounts. Meta will also cooperate with iWIN to launch an educational tour across Taiwan during the summer vacation to help parents and children start meaningful conversations about internet use and to raise public awareness of online safety.
When asked by the media about the connection between Meta's strengthening of Teen Account settings and the EU's "Digital Services Act" and Australia's child protection regulations, Chua responded that Meta had proactively launched Teen Accounts before local legislation was enacted. He said Meta's concern about social media bans is that they create a "false sense of security." Taking Australia as an example, Meta observed that after the social media ban took effect, teenagers began to switch to smaller social media platforms where safety measures were not as robust as those on larger platforms, potentially bringing greater risks.
He emphasized that Meta has always advocated for and encouraged the industry to improve online safety measures while ensuring that applications have age-appropriate thresholds. (Editor: Yang Kai-hsiang) 1150515