A bunch of 40 state attorneys common on Monday urged Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg to abandon plans to launch a model of Instagram for youngsters below the age of 13.
“Use of social media can be detrimental to the health and well-being of children, who are not equipped to navigate the challenges of having a social media account,” the officers stated in a letter.
“Further, Facebook has historically failed to protect the welfare of children on its platforms,” they stated.
The letter additionally signed by the attorneys common of the District of Columbia and three USÂ territories.
A Facebook spokesman stated the corporate has “simply began exploring a model of Instagram for youngsters” and stated it was committing “to not showing ads in any Instagram experience we develop for people under the age of 13”.
The firm stated it agreed any model of the photo-sharing app Instagram “must prioritise their safety and privacy, and we will consult with experts in child development, child safety and mental health, and privacy advocates to inform it”.
The bipartisan letter, which was signed by the attorneys common of New York, Texas, California, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Michigan, Ohio, Utah, Vermont, Kentucky, and others stated “it appears that Facebook is not responding to a need, but instead creating one”.
Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey stated on Twitter {that a} youngsters’s Instagram “is a shameful attempt to exploit and profit off vulnerable people”.
The letter stated media stories from 2019 confirmed that Facebook’s Messenger Kids app, supposed for youngsters between the ages of six and 12, “contained a significant design flaw that allowed children to circumvent restrictions on online interactions and join group chats with strangers that were not previously approved by the children’s parents”.
Last month, the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood additionally referred to as on Zuckerberg not to create a youngsters model, saying it might put them at “great risk.”
© Thomson Reuters 2021
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