Instagram says that if a suspected under-13 user is reported, the account will be frozen temporarily, while the company seeks verification of their age. If that user cannot show that they’re 13 or older, the account will be deleted.
, an editor at Common Sense, a children’s advocacy group in San Francisco, noting that Instagram as a whole poses myriad challenges for underage users, including “mature content, social pressure of comparing yourself to other people, the pressure of being in constant contact.” “I didn’t realize the amount of pedophiles on Instagram,” she said. “I don't know why any grown man would be following her on Instagram and telling her she’s cute.”
“I paint and I sell my paintings,” said Ava Moreci, a 16-year-old student at Napa High School, explaining that she wanted to see how many people were clicking on a given Instagram post along with related demographic data. Earlier this year, marketing consultant David Stier discovered that Instagram was exposing the personal contact details for under-18 users that had converted to business profiles.Stier formally alerted Facebook — Instagram’s parent company — in a late February 2019 via an online feedback form, saying the problem had a global scale.
Stier also informed the German data protection authority of a possible violation of Europe’s sweeping privacy protections under the General Data Protection Regulation, but the complaint was referred to Ireland. Children should have control over each piece of data they share, she added. “It shouldn’t be an all or nothing proposition.”
NapoleonCatCom Thank you for the stats on social media usage that you provide on your site. They were my 'ground truth' for estimating how many kids are at risk of being contacted by complete strangers simply b/c IG still shows kids contact info in plain sight. panpremier