To protect online space from Toxicity, Instagram launches 'Parents Guide' for young people's safety

HYDERABAD: On the occasion of Safer Internet Day on February 8 and aligned with the global theme of 2021 – ‘Together For a Better Internet’ – Instagram on Tuesday launched a Parents Guide for India. The guide is to help young people be safe, by informing parents about all the safety features that exist on the platform, providing parents with a better understanding of the changing digital landscape. The guide has inputs from key organisations working actively on the rights and safety of children - Center for Social Research, Cyber Peace Foundation, Aarambh India Initiative, Young Leaders for Activity Citizenship,

It’s Ok To Talk and Suicide Prevention India Foundation. The guide takes into account all the new updates on Instagram, such as ‘DM reachability controls’, which gives creator and business accounts  the control to choose who can message them on Instagram and who can add them to groups on Instagram Direct. Another example is ‘Bulk comment management’, which gives people the option to delete comments in bulk, as well as block or restrict multiple accounts that post negative comments. 

How does Instagram plan to tell kids to also be real in what they do and that life is not always like the curated content they want to post. Is there a campaign or a tool that eases the pressure off children from always posting only the best part of their lives?                                          

“The context of launching a Parents Guide for Instagram includes the understanding that social comparison is something that happens both on and off-line, young people are more prone to comparing themselves with others than almost any other age group, often with negative consequences. How their posts are received, for example, can significantly affect their mood and self-esteem. It is helpful to be aware of this sensitivity and to pay attention to whether online comparisons are affecting their overall well-being. If one notices a great deal of emphasis on being liked online, it is important to check in,” says Tara Bedi, Public Policy and Community Outreach Manager for Instagram in India.  

Taking charge

Manage comments: You are in control of who can comment on your photos and videos. In the “Comment Controls” section of the app settings, you can choose to allow comments from everyone, people you follow and those people’s followers, just the people they follow, or just their followers. You can also remove comments entirely from your posts.

Filter out comments: We’ve built filters that automatically remove offensive words and phrases and bullying comments. You can also create your own list of words or emojis you don’t want to have appear in the comments section when you post by going to “Filters” in the Comment Controls section.

Comment and caption warnings: ‘We automatically identify when a comment or a caption in a post is found to be hurtful and offensive, and we notify the person making the comment or posting the caption before it is posted.’ This gives them a chance to pause and undo their comment or caption, and we also use the opportunity to show them what is and isn’t allowed on Instagram. 

— Manju Latha Kalanidhi
 kalanidhi@newindianexpress.com
 @mkalanidhi