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Meta has banned users under 16 from livestreaming unless approved by a parent, the tech giant said in a blog post on Tuesday, April 9. The change is part of a broader push to expand protections for teen users across Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger.
There are at least 54 million active "Teen Accounts" worldwide, according to Meta.
"With these changes, teens under 16 will be prohibited from going Live unless their parents give them permission to do so," Meta said "We'll also require teens under 16 to get parental permission to turn off our feature that blurs images containing suspected nudity in DMs. We'll make these updates available in the next couple of months."
The update builds on the Teen Accounts feature, which Meta launched in September 2024 to give teens a safer social media experience by default. The accounts come with tighter controls on who can message them, what content they see, and how long they spend in the app.
Meta said the model has been popular. It claims 97% of 13- to 15-year-olds have stuck with the default restrictions and 94% of US parents say Teen Accounts are helpful.
Those protections are also expanding to Facebook and Messenger, starting in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. Teen Accounts on those apps will mirror Instagram’s limits, placing teens in private accounts, capping screen time, and blocking messages from people they don’t already follow.
It's the latest change for Meta, which also unveiled a new Friends tab on Facebook that shows only content from friends, removing recommended posts and ads.
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