Lawmakers continue to try to police social media use among teens — but Meta, parent company to Facebook, Instagram, and Threads, is pushing another group of companies to do the security work.
Meta (META) -) is expected to announce a proposal on Nov. 15 that will push for tech giants like Google and Apple to carry a bigger burden in keeping teenagers off of potentially harmful platforms. Meta's vision is that these companies, which manage app stores such as the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, require parental approval for teenagers aged 13 to 15 to download applications, according to a report by The Washington Post.
Related: Mark Zuckerberg finally approves Instagram feature users were asking for
Meta's global head on safety Antigone Davis told The Washington Post that this is the way to create a "consistent standard" that is "industry-wide" for adding safety measures on sites. It also gives parents the power to decide whether their child can download the apps.
The proposal puts the responsibility away from social media sites, a different approach to some state legislation that's being pushed as states like Utah and Arkansas have already passed laws this year that required minors to get parental consent to create accounts on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
Related: Meta sued over 'addictive' features targeting children
However, federal judges have pushed back on the proposals in these states as some deem them as unconstitutional. Some have claimed that these measures only require children to provide more personal data in order to access the applications.
Meta has been under spotlight for a while in terms of its handling of the security of younger users. Just last week, court documents revealed that Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg rejected proposals to remove a "beauty filter" from Instagram that was supposedly harming teenagers due to promulgation of unfair beauty standards.
Get investment guidance from trusted portfolio managers without the management fees. Sign up for Action Alerts PLUS now.
