Instagram

Instagram is a free photo- and video-sharing social media app, owned by Meta.

With over two billion active monthly users, it is one of the most popular social media apps.

Photo sharing was Instagram’s main focus and is still the biggest draw for many users. 

Feeds

Users can post and share photos on their personal feeds and apply filters and other photo-enhancing tools to customise images.

They can tag friends, add your location and share the image to other social media platforms, for example, Facebook. There is also a direct messaging feature which allows users to share photos or posts with individual followers.

Stories

Stories allow users to take photos and videos, apply location geo-tags and post them to account profiles for 24 hours.

Although users can only access a story for a short time, someone can take a screenshot.

Live

Instagram Live is a feature within Instagram Stories that allows users to live stream video to followers in real time.

Reels 

The Reels feature allows users to record videos up to 15 minutes in length, with the app's camera and add music. Reels can be shared publicly, or kept private.  

Instagram has positioned itself as the perfect place for people to showcase their lives – and to peek into the lives of others. Celebrities and influencers use it to reach and grow their audiences. In recent years, it has also become a powerful tool for brands and advertisers to market to the public. 

Age restrictions

Children must be 13 years old globally before they can create an account, but this is overridden by the UK's total social media ban for under-16s coming into force in Spring 2027. The only exception right now is if you set up an account representing your child

There is currently a form on their site allows people to report an underage account. 

Teen Accounts 

In 2024, the platform launched Instagram Teen Accounts, automatically placing teenagers into accounts with built-in protections. However, from Spring 2027, the parental supervision features for under-16s will become obsolete in the UK, as the new law bans under-16s from the platform entirely and automatically locks down privacy settings for 16- and 17-year-olds by default.

Inappropriate content

Instagram has a set of community guidelines, which forbid the posting of nude images, as well as stating that Instagram “is not a place to support or praise terrorism, organised crime, or hate groups”, among other things.

A ‘hidden words’ feature filters out any direct messages deemed to contain abusive language. Parents can set what words they want to be hidden as well. 

This article in the Meta Family Center explain more about how to help if your child encounters upsetting content online.

Blocking

You can block people on Instagram – meaning they won't be able to see your profile or search for your account. 

You can also filter out comments. In the "Comment controls" section of the app settings, users can also remove comments entirely from their posts. 

Reporting

You can report posts you see in your feed. Reporting is completely anonymous, so the person you report will not know that you have done so. 

Screen time

How do you manage your child's screen time? There are platform and device-level tools that can help. But it is also a question of what your child is doing online and the quality of their screen use. Read more about screen time here.

Wellbeing

Digital self-awareness is essential for teens. Learning to manage tech's impact on their mood helps keep their wellbeing in balance. This article in the Meta Family Center explains more.

Managing relationships

It's likely that, at some point, your teen may experience difficulty with a friendship, whether that's one that exists purely online or is a blended, online-offline relationship.

Whether it's a simple falling-out or a complex, messy and emotional break-up, there are ways you can help. This article in the Meta Family Center explains more.

Spot something that doesn't look quite right? You can email librarian@parentzone.org.uk to submit comments and feedback.

This article was last updated on 18/10/24.