Roblox limits messaging to users under 13 years of age

The online video game platform will not allow users under the age of 13 to send messages to other users outside of the platform’s games and experiences. However, during a press conference, Roblox explained that users will still be able to access in-game chats because the company considers communication to be part of the platform experience. Parents will be able to change this setting if they want.

Roblox also introduced other protections for young users, such as age restrictions for certain experiences, along with enhanced parental controls. Parents will now be able to adjust controls and review their child’s activity even if they are not physically together. Those who want to be more involved in monitoring their child’s activities can link their Roblox account to their kids’ account. The company is also rolling out simplified descriptions of the types of content available – it will no longer label experiences by age, but based on the type of content users can expect.

Roblox has been criticized for failing to protect children and young users from online predators. A recent Bloomberg investigation exposed how predators can find and manipulate children on the platform. Shortly after the report was published, the company said it would introduce changes to keep its youngest users safe.

Snapchat adds family location sharing to the app

As part of its latest update, Snapchat is announcing the arrival of new location sharing features to its Family Center, a hub within the app where it offers tools and resources for parents.

The feature will be available on Snap Map, which allows users to see where their friends are and have been, what’s going on in their area, and also save and find favourite restaurants and bars. In addition to enabling the location-sharing option, the map will also allow parents to select up to three specific areas, such as home, school, or the gym, and receive notifications when their family member leaves or arrives at those locations. As part of the same upgrade, parents will be able to see which friends their child is sharing their location with.

The company pointed out that location sharing is always turned off by default, and there is no option to share location with anyone who is not an accepted friend. For people who do share their location with all of their Snapchat friends, the platform is adding new reminders to review their selections.

Instagram plans to allow resetting of recommendations algorithm

The social network is now testing the possibility for users to reset their recommendations. By doing so, users will be able to start their algorithm from scratch and retrain it to show content they enjoy via the Explore page, home feed and Reels tab.

Once a user resets their Instagram recommendations, content recommendations will begin to personalize again over time based on the posts and accounts they interact with. Those who do so will have the option to review their follower list to unfollow accounts that post content you are no longer interested in. The new addition is similar to a feature TikTok launched last year that allowed users to reset their For You feeds.

Instagram launches the new feature after incorporating updates for its teen users in September. The social network announced that it will convert all current and future youth accounts into Teen Accounts, with built-in protections. The new features will limit who can communicate with a teen on the app, as well as the type of content the account holder can see. The social network has also launched new parental control features that allow parents to better control their children’s activity on the app.