Instagram is Automatically Changing Some Accounts to Private The move is designed to prevent users from having "to deal with unwanted DMs or comments from strangers."
By Emily Rella
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
Instagram announced this week that new users under the age of 16 will be given private accounts by default.
Though young users will still have the option to make their accounts private after completing sign-up, the Facebook-owned social media application says it has data proving teens want private accounts.
"Historically, we asked young people to choose between a public account or a private account when they signed up for Instagram, but our recent research showed that they appreciate a more private experience. During testing, eight out of ten young people accepted the private default settings during sign-up," said a Tuesday release from the company.
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The move is designed to prevent young users from having "to deal with unwanted DMs or comments from strangers" while still allowing them to "easily make new friends and keep up with their family."
Other changes were made this week in service of young users' protection, too: It will now be harder for potentially suspicious accounts to find young users on the app and advertisers will have fewer options to reach young people with ads.
