These are the safety features social media apps offer for kids

Forty-one state attorneys general recently filed a lawsuit against Meta — the parent company of Facebook and Instagram — claiming the company has caused mental health issues in adolescents.

Children's use of social media has changed over the years, with social media sites such as YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram becoming more prominent than Facebook.

Even groups that like social media, such as youth-led Design It For Us, which advocates "for safer online platforms and social media," are calling for tech companies to create safeguards on social media.

Here are the apps that kids use most — and the safety features social media sites have implemented in an attempt to help protect them.

What social media and apps do kids use?

A Pew Research survey conducted from Sept. 26 to Oct. 23, 2023, asked 1,453 13- to 17-year-olds about social media, internet use and device ownership.

The survey revealed that YouTube continues to be a top platform among teens, with 90% of teens surveyed saying they use YouTube. Following close behind in popularity are TikTok, Snapchat and Instagram.

Here’s a look at other findings.

For ages 13-17, their use of these social media platforms hasn’t changed much in the last year. Here’s how many reported using various platforms:

• 63% TikTok

• 60% Snapchat

• 59% Instagram

• Among older teens, ages 15-17, 70% say they use those platforms.

The use of other platforms has dropped:

• Facebook: 71% in 2014-15, but 33% today

• X (formerly Twitter) has also decreased in the past decade.

Internet use and cellphones are ubiquitous:

• Half of teens said they use the internet “almost constantly,” about the same as last year, but roughly double the number who said this in the 2014-15 survey.

• 90% said they use the internet at least daily

• 95% of teens have or have access to a smartphone

• 90% have access to a desktop or laptop computer

• 83% have access to a gaming console

• 65% have access to a tablet

YouTube's safety features

• YouTube has a separate app called YouTube Kids, a filtered version of YouTube with less content available than the main app and website. YouTube Kids looks for content "that is age-appropriate, adheres to our quality principles, and is diverse enough to meet the varied interests of kids globally," according to information on the YouTube website.

• Community guidelines place age-restrictions on content that the platform says is "harmful or dangerous acts that minors could imitate," has "adult themes in family content" and "vulgar language."

• Content featuring children may have some features disabled, such as comments, live chat, live streaming, video recommendations, community posts and shorts video remixing.

TikTok's safety features

• Restricts mature content to ages 18 and older.

• Must be 13 years old to open an account on the main TikTok.

• Separate "Kids Mode" for users younger than 13, which provides a more limited experience. Young users can see curated "clean" videos but are limited as to what else they may do in the app. For example, they may not search or comment on videos.

• Restricts sending and receiving direct messages to those 16 or older.

• Restricts users younger than 18 from going "live," sending gifts to a creator during a live session or making money on TikTok by using features such as selling merchandise, crowdfunding for projects and more.

• Content made by uses younger than 16 is ineligible for the "For You" feed, which provides recommended content based on a user's specific interests and videos a user has previously watched or reacted to.

Snapchat's safety features

• Requires users to be 13 years or older to create an account. The platform will delete accounts for users it determines to be younger than 13.

• The platform has a digital literacy program called Safety Snapshot that educates users about data privacy, security and online safety.

• A parent guide with tips for parents.

Instagram's safety features

• Users must be 13 years or older to create an account

• The default setting for users younger than 16 is "private," though there is option to change to "public."

• The default setting for users older than 16 is "public," but there is an option to change to "private."

• By default, users younger than 18 cannot be tagged, mentioned or have their content used in Reels Remixes or Guides, unless they follow the account

• Restricts people older than 19 from private messaging teens who don't follow them.

• Stops blocked or reported adult accounts from interacting with teen accounts.

• Content controls for teenage users to choose how much "sensitive content" they'll see from accounts they don't follow. The options are "Standard" and "Less."

• Content that is reviewed and found to be disturbing, such as graphic or violent content, is removed for users younger than 18.

• For users younger than 18, Instagram restricts the visibility of content related to "alcohol, tobacco, bladed weapons, weight loss products, cosmetic procedures, sex toys, sexual enhancement products, gambling or entheogens."

• Parental supervision tools are available in the platform's "Family Center," including setting time limits, scheduling breaks, seeing the time spent on the app, who's following the teen's account and who the teen follows, "shared connections," blocked or reported accounts and the teen's privacy setting selections. Both the parent and teen must agree to participate.

• Notifications encouraging 13- to 17-year-old users to take breaks from using the app and reminders to use "Quiet Mode" if the app is used "for a period of time late at night."

Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: YouTube, TikTok, Instagram social media apps offer kid safety features