Facebook Has A New App For Kids 13 And Younger [VIDEO]
Facebook is releasing a new social media app designed for kids under 13 years old to use, and it comes with security, but more concern as well.
By nowproducerdave on December 5, 2017
…and it has people debating about social media being accessible to children that young, and concerned about the damaging effects.
The new app is called “Messenger Kids,” and it’s designed specifically for children 13 years old and younger. Since you have to be at least 13 to sign up for Facebook according to their fine print. The messaging app will allow kids to send text messages, pictures, and videos, as well as allow them to draw on photos and add SnapChat-like filters. Facebook says that the “data collection” will be more limited, and parents will still have to allow their children to use the new app. Also, if two kids want to “friend” each other on the app, a parent will have to approve the contact. Facebook’s global safety leader, Antigone Davis, says that it’s “just like setting up a play date.”
Obviously social media is a huge part of society, and children are starting to get “left out” in some cases, so this will allow them to be in touch with their own friends, similar to their parents and even older siblings, but there’s a marketing tactic to it as well. Facebook is beginning to realize that kids under 13 can be a pretty valuable advertising target, and this might be a good way for them to sell more ads to companies. This raises some more eyebrows because kids that young, according to the article, sometimes can’t tell the difference between what’s an ad or not, but there are new laws and changes happening in policies that apply to childrens’ privacy. See all the details here, and the official Messenger Kids website here.
Do you think a social network for children under 13 is a good idea, or do you think they’re just too young to completely understand things they may encounter online? Do you let your kids under 13 on Facebook?
