Amid criticism over the negative impact of its social networks on young people, Meta has decided to hide posts from them on topics that could give them dangerous ideas, Reuters and News.ro reported.

Meta announces that posts related to certain sensitive topics, such as self-flagellation, graphic violence, eating disorders, and others, will no longer appear in teen news feeds.

Posts falling into such categories will simply be hidden from young people so as not to expose them to dangerous ideas. The company says it consulted with experts on teen development to decide what types of content should be blocked before taking action.

Additionally, teens who already use Instagram or Facebook will automatically be switched to the most limited set of settings available for the two networks.

These settings will block a number of features. Among other things, teenagers will no longer be able to be contacted except by the users they follow, and disturbing comments will be automatically hidden.

These are some of the toughest measures Meta has ever taken to protect teenagers, and it comes amid several lawsuits accusing the company of targeting children under the age of 13 on its platforms and failing to transparently manage its accounts. records

In 2021, Instagram has already announced a number of measures aimed at protecting teenagers who use the image-sharing social network.

But last October, Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and the new Threads platform, was sued by 40 US states, which accused it of doing everything it could to attract young people to Instagram and Facebook and make them dependent on these social networks.

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Target, target of unprecedented US anti-teen class action lawsuit

The complaint compared Meta’s strategies to those used in the past by the tobacco industry and more recently by e-cigarette manufacturers.

The complaint, filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges that Meta misled the public in an attempt to attract young people to these platforms, which ultimately affected their mental health. The group has been accused of exploiting the weaknesses of young people, who are highly vulnerable consumers, while ignoring the impact these networks can have on the mental health of teenagers.

Met is accused of ignoring potential dangers, putting profits first. The action is unprecedented in the number of American states that have come together and synchronized.

The complaint states that Meta “developed psychologically manipulative features to encourage the compulsive and widespread use of platforms such as Instagram by young users.”

It is also noted that the company’s algorithms are designed to use many warnings and notifications in applications.

“We are disappointed that instead of working productively with companies in the industry to create clear, age-appropriate standards for the many apps used by teenagers, the attorneys general have chosen this path,” Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta group responded at the time. .

PHOTO Article: Rokas Tenys, Dreamstime.com.