Instagram will begin locking the accounts of users who fail to provide their date of birth.
Facebook, which owns the platform, made the announcement on Tuesday as part of its new push to introduce increased safety measures for children under 18. The move comes two days before the U.K. will launch the Age Appropriate Design Code. This new code requires companies to pre-set their apps at their strictest privacy settings for kids and prohibits them from disclosing children’s data unless absolutely necessary.
“This information allows us to create new safety features for young people and helps ensure we provide the right experiences to the right age group,” the official statement read.
For months, Instagram has been working to make the app safer for children. In March, they announced that adults could no longer direct message users under 18 that were not following them. In July, all children’s accounts under the age of 16 were automatically set to private, though they still have the option to make their profiles public.
Since 2019, birthdates have been required when signing up for Instagram. Existing users will be asked to provide their age upon starting the app with the new protocols. If a user chooses to ignore the request, sensitive posts will remain blurred on Instagram. In the future, every user will be expected to enter their birthday to continue using the platform.
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