Instagram Alerts Parents to Teen Self-Harm Searches

Instagram is set to roll out a new feature that will notify parents if their teenagers repeatedly search for content related to self-harm or suicide. This notification system will be accessible to parents who use the app's existing supervision tools. Both teens and their parents will be informed about this upcoming update.

The feature will trigger an alert when specific phrases indicating self-harm or suicidal intent are searched multiple times within a short period. These alerts will be sent to parents via email, text, WhatsApp, and directly within the Instagram app. A full-screen message will then guide parents on the nature of their teen's searches and offer relevant support resources.

This enhancement arrives amidst ongoing legal challenges and scrutiny regarding Meta's impact on adolescent mental health, including recent testimony in app addiction trials. Instagram has already moved to automatically place all users under 16 into restricted Teen Accounts. The new alert system is designed to complement existing policies against self-harm content glorification.

Initially, this feature will be available to parents in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada, with a broader international rollout planned for later in the year. Meta is also developing similar notification capabilities for parents if teens engage in conversations about suicide with Meta AI, following lawsuits against other AI providers.