Meta’s child-safety deal exposes a privacy problem

A landmark $16.7 billion settlement between Meta and 47 US states and territories highlights the growing tension between children's online safety and privacy concerns. Social media companies largely provided optional safety controls until now, leaving families to decide whether to use them. Meta's new default restrictions on teen accounts on Facebook and Instagram will impose a two-hour daily limit, block access between midnight and 6am, and limit visible "like" counts. Parents can loosen some controls, but most measures will operate in the US for ten years.

The settlement raises questions about how Meta can identify children without collecting more personal information from everyone. Potential identification methods include government identification, facial analysis through selfies, and estimates based on account activity. Each method presents its own privacy challenges. An unverified adult could be placed under teenage restrictions until they prove their age, and past breaches involving age-verification providers highlight the risks of collecting identification.

The settlement shifts safety away from optional tools towards restrictions built directly into the product. A two-hour limit and a nighttime block are more effective than previous efforts, such as Instagram's "take a break" prompt, which users often dismissed. While the settlement does not fully address the nature of the content teenagers see, it establishes that platforms can be required to change their product design, not just publish advice or offer parents more settings menus.

Parents receive control and responsibility but must prove they are the child's guardian. However, Meta does not require birth certificates or parent identification. Critics argue that controls cannot replace a safe product, as parents cannot fully manage risks that remain invisible. Europe is considering a more privacy-focused verification system, where an independent party checks a person's age and gives the platform only a yes-or-no answer, potentially offering a better balance than allowing each platform to collect and retain verification data.