What it is
Instagram is Meta's photo and video app. Children use it to follow friends, watch Reels, and message. The minimum age is 13. A public account lets anyone see posts, comment, and try to start a chat.
Vanish mode and view-once photos make messages harder to revisit. Location stickers and photos of a school uniform, a street sign, or a front door can show where a child will be. Meta's Family Center includes supervision tools for accounts of teenagers.
What to look out for
- A public account, or a second account you were not told about.
- Message requests and vanish mode.
- Followers they cannot name.
- Photos that show school, a team kit, or the outside of home.
- Older followers who are unusually interested, flattering, or generous.
Ways to stay safe
These steps are for Instagram. The house rules still apply on every app.
- Keep the account private and approve followers together at the start.
- Turn off message requests from people they do not follow.
- Remove location stickers and avoid posting in school uniform.
- Use supervision tools in Meta's Family Center if the account is allowed.
- Agree that an adult who asks to move from comments into a private chat is a reason to stop and tell you.
In the news
Published reports you can read yourself. A headline is the proof, not a set of instructions, and this page does not repeat graphic detail.
- Criminals are using private messaging to groom children Where police named the app, 40% of cases were Snapchat, 9% were WhatsApp, and 9% were Facebook and Instagram.
- Online grooming crimes against children increase by 89% in six years Where police named the app: Snapchat, WhatsApp, Facebook and Messenger, Instagram, and Kik.
A way to start the conversation
Look at the follower list together and ask which of these people could pick them out of a crowd. That is a practical test, not a trick question.
Video
Instagram parent briefing
A short video for this guide can be added by an editor. Until then, the written briefing above is the one to use.