Instagram said on Thursday that it's deploying a new set of tools to protect young people and fight against 'Sextortion' (sexual extorsion), including automatically blurring naked photos sent through direct messages.
The social media app, part of Meta, said in a blog post that the main goal is for potential scammers and criminals to find and interact with teens.
"We've started sharing more signals about sextortion accounts to other tech companies through Lantern, helping disrupt this criminal activity across the internet," Instagram added.
The DMs feature will also "encourage people to think twice before sending nude images." This tool will be turned on by default for teens under 18 at a global level, while adults will receive a notification encouraging them to turn it on as well.
The tool won't be added to Meta's other apps, Facebook and WhatsApp.
After detecting nudity, the app will send users a message reminding them to be cautious and allow them to "unsend these photos if they've changed their mind." Users trying to forward such images will see a message encouraging them to reconsider.
The company also said it's working on technology to identify accounts that could be involved in sexual extortion scams "based on a range of signals."
The deployment comes as Instagram and other social media companies face increased criticism for their negative impact on minors' mental health.
Last year, 41 states filed lawsuits against Meta for driving social media addiction in its young users. It alleges the company has been harvesting their data and deploying features to promote the compulsive use of their app despite its negative effects.
"Meta has profited from children's pain by intentionally designing its platforms with manipulative features that make children addicted to their platforms while lowering their self-esteem," said Letitia James, the attorney general for New York.
States have began taking measures to address this concern. In late March, Florida banned social media accounts for children under 14 and will require parental permission for those aged 15 and 16. The law will take effect on the first day on the next year, but is set to be challenged in the courts.
Latinos are the demographic with the highest proportion of people who use TikTok, Instagram, and Whatsapp, in the U.S., according to the Pew Research Center's survey of 'American's Social Media Use.'
When it comes to Instagram, almost six-in-ten Latinos (58%) and Asian (57%) adults report using the platform, a higher proportion than the reported among Black (46%) and White (43%) adults, the survey found. The average usage among all participants was 48%.
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