FACEBOOK -YOUNG TEENS- FARTHINGS : GLOBAL PRECIS

FREEDOM from social media - but not for girls. In 2023., Arturo Bejar testified before Congress that in 2021 he informed META executives that sexual harassment of young teens was rampant on its platforms.

'' We had identified the disturbing fact that 13 percent of Instagram users aged 13 to 15 self-reported having received unwanted sexual advances via the platform within the previous seven days,'' he testified.

'' Looked at over time, it is likely the largest-sexual harassment of teens to have ever happened and one that clearly calls for action.''

The harassment, Bejar explained, often happens to direct messages, which are even more challenging to regulate.

In 2024, META introduced stricter messaging settings for children under 16, including tools to '' help protect people from sextortion '' and from other forms of intimate image abuse.''

But he is skeptical that these tools are useful. For one, users lie about their age.

The Master Precis continues. The World Students Society thanks Jessica Grose.