On Instagram, Facebook, and other Meta social media (SNS), teen accounts will no longer be able to view content equivalent to adults-only ratings.
Meta said on the 8th that it will introduce a content restriction feature for teen accounts on domestic Instagram and Facebook SNS, aligned with the U.S. movie rating standard of "PG-13."
PG-13 indicates content that may be inappropriate for children under 13 and calls for parental guidance. Under Korean standards, it is similar to 12+ or 15+. The feature was first introduced in October last year in the United States, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere, and it will be applied from today across the Asia-Pacific region, including Korea.
If it is a teen account, the feature is automatically applied without a separate update. On Instagram, it applies not only to recommended content, feed, and stories but also to comments and direct messages (DM).
Antigone Davis, Meta's head of safety policy, said, "Even if someone sends policy-violating content to a teen via DM, that content cannot be viewed," and noted, "Search results or keyword searches that violate teen policies are also blocked." The setting cannot be changed separately without parental consent.
Meta will also restrict teen accounts from following accounts that regularly post adult content or accounts whose profile photos, IDs, or bios are deemed inappropriate for teens. In addition, responses from artificial intelligence (AI) that exceed PG-13 will be restricted from being searched or shown.
Meta emphasized that the policy imposes stricter limits than typical PG-13 movie standards. While the U.S. movie rating system may allow some partial nudity or strong profanity, such content will not be viewable on Instagram, Facebook, or Messenger.
Additional restriction features will be introduced for households seeking stronger protections. When this feature is enabled, more content is blocked, and the ability to view or exchange comments on posts is also limited. Conversely, an option to view more content will be available, but even that will be permitted only within a much narrower range than adult accounts. Switching features is possible only with parental consent and when supervision tools are enabled.
Meta will also act against underage accounts created by falsifying age. It will identify suspected underage accounts by estimating age based on birthday photos posted to posts or stories. In this regard, Meta said it is also pushing legislation to mandate age verification at the app market level.
Meta said, "It is more effective to require parental approval when downloading from the app market than to simply block app use," adding, "We are working to ensure the related legislation is reflected."
Since 2024, Meta has expanded teen protection features in Korea. Teen accounts are set to private by default and can receive messages only from a limited set of followers. Notifications are also automatically blocked from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m.