Instagram — Enforcement

moderateAnti-PrivacyJan 12, 2023 → May 3, 2023Enforcement

Executive Summary

The FTC proposed amending its 2020 consent order with Meta after finding the company failed to comply with privacy commitments, including misleading parents about Messenger Kids controls. The proposed changes would impose a blanket prohibition on Meta — including Instagram — from monetizing data of users under 18, and would require written third-party assessor approval before launching new products or features affecting children. Meta called the proposal 'a political stunt.'

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What Happened

On May 3, 2023, the FTC proposed amendments to its 2020 consent order against Meta after alleging the company repeatedly violated privacy rules. The agency found that Meta failed to cut off app developers' access to user data after 90 days of inactivity as promised, allowing some data use to continue into 2020. The FTC also determined that Meta misrepresented parental controls in Messenger Kids, as children could communicate with unapproved contacts through group video calls and chats despite the company's claims otherwise.

Who Is Affected

The proposed changes would affect all Meta users under 18 years old across the company's platforms, including Instagram. Parents who rely on Messenger Kids controls were specifically misled about their ability to limit their children's communications. The blanket prohibition on monetizing youth data would prevent Meta from profiting from information collected from any user under 18.

Why It Matters

This represents the FTC's second major enforcement action against Meta in recent years, following a $5 billion settlement in 2019 and a 2020 consent order. The proposed amendments would impose some of the strictest restrictions on a major social media company regarding youth data, requiring written third-party approval before launching products or features affecting children. The case demonstrates how the FTC is attempting to strengthen enforcement when companies violate existing privacy orders and COPPA regulations.

What You Should Do

Parents using Messenger Kids should be aware that the app's contact controls may not have functioned as advertised and should review their children's contact lists and communications. Users under 18 on Instagram and other Meta platforms should monitor how the proposed order changes might affect their experience if the amendments are finalized. All affected users can submit comments to the FTC regarding the proposed consent order modifications during the public comment period.

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Event summaries are generated by Claude AI from verified sources and reviewed by humans before publication.

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