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Meta announced on Friday that parents will soon be able to disable their teenagers’ private chats with AI characters – the latest safety measure for its social media platforms following criticism over flirty chatbots.
The company said parents will be able to block specific AI characters and view broad topics their teens discuss with chatbots and Meta’s AI assistant, without completely turning off AI access.
The AI assistant will remain available with age-appropriate defaults even if parents disable one‑on‑one chats with AI characters.
“Technology will never replace the value of critical thinking, real-life connections, and human interaction – and that’s not our aim,” Meta said in its announcement. “We believe AI can complement traditional learning methods and exploration in a way that feels supportive, all with the proper age-appropriate guardrails in place.”
META PLACES NEW SAFEGUARDS ON TEEN INSTAGRAM ACCOUNTS, INTRODUCES PG-13-GUIDED CONTENT FILTERS
A group of teens seen using their smart phones. (Matt Cardy/Getty Images / Getty Images)
The company said its AI characters are designed not to engage in age-inappropriate discussions with minors about topics such as self-harm, suicide, or eating disorders.
Friday’s announcement follows Meta’s statement earlier this week that its AI experiences for teenagers will be guided by the PG-13 movie rating system, part of an effort to block children from accessing inappropriate content.
The new supervision features build on existing safety measures for teen accounts, including keeping conversations age-appropriate, the company said.
Meta said parents would be able to block specific AI characters and view broad topics their teenagers discuss with chatbots and Meta’s AI assistant, without completely turning off AI access. (Jens Büttner/picture alliance via Getty Images / Getty Images)
“We know teens may try to get around these protections, so we’re also using AI technology to place those we suspect are teens into these protections, even if they tell us they’re adults,” Meta said.
Meta is allowing parents to disable private chats following backlash over flirtatious chatbots. (Getty / Getty Images)
A report published in September found that several Instagram safety features did not function effectively. According to the report, Meta’s chatbots were also observed engaging in “conversations that are romantic or sensual” – prompting further criticism from parents and child-safety advocates.
BIPARTISAN SENATORS CALL FOR INSTAGRAM TO SHUT DOWN ITS NEW MAP FEATURE, CITING CHILDREN’S SAFETY CONCERNS
The new features will debut on Instagram early next year, in the U.S., U.K., Canada and Australia. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The new features will debut on Instagram early next year, in the U.S., U.K., Canada and Australia.
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“AI is evolving rapidly, which means we are going to need to constantly adapt and strengthen our protections for teens, while listening and responding to concerns parents have about this new technology,” Meta said. “We hope today’s updates bring parents some peace of mind that their teens can make the most of all the benefits AI offers, with the right guardrails and oversight in place.”
Reuters contributed to this report.
