Imagine your child made a fake profile online pretending to be 13 years old. Within minutes, strangers started sending them bad messages and scary pictures. That is not a made-up story. That is exactly what happened when government investigators tested Instagram and Facebook.
This week, a jury (a group of regular people who decide if someone broke the law) in New Mexico said: Meta broke the rules and hurt children.
Meta is the company that owns Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp.
The jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million. That sounds like a lot. But Meta made $201 billion last year. It is like telling someone who has £1,000 to pay back 2p.
What Actually Happened in Court
New Mexico’s top lawyer ran an undercover test. His team created fake social media profiles pretending to be children. Those fake child accounts were quickly flooded with bad content and contacted by adults who wanted to harm them. NPR
The jury agreed that Meta put making money ahead of keeping kids safe. They also agreed Meta was dishonest with the public about how safe its apps really are.
Why This Matters for Your Family
This is the first time a jury has found Meta guilty in a trial about child safety. It shows a real shift in how the public sees social media companies and their job to keep young people safe.
But Meta says it will fight the decision in court. Nothing changes overnight.
Meta did make one change during the trial. It said it will stop allowing private, hidden messages on Instagram later this year. CNN Hidden messages (called end-to-end encryption, meaning only the sender and receiver can read them) were making it harder for police to catch predators.
What Countries Are Doing About This
Governments around the world are not waiting. Many are moving to ban children from social media altogether.
- Australia became the first country in the world to ban social media for under-16s. The ban started in December 2025. KSAT
- France passed a bill banning social media for children under 15. Denmark is planning a ban for under-15s. Portugal has blocked under-13s from creating accounts. NPR
- The UK government launched a public consultation in March 2026 to look at whether children should be banned from social media. It is looking at raising the minimum age from 13 to 16. CNBC The consultation closes in May 2026, with a government response expected by summer.
The direction of travel is clear. Countries are deciding that the apps cannot be trusted to protect children on their own.
What You Can Do Right Now
If your child is under 13, keep them off social media completely. The minimum age for Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat is already 13. Apps like these were not built for younger children. No parental controls make up for that.
For children 13 and older, here is what actually helps:
- Turn on private mode. On Instagram, go to Settings, then Account, then Private Account. Only people your child approves can then see their posts.
- Check their follower list together. Do they follow or are followed by accounts they do not know in real life?
- Know about Finstas. A Finsta is a fake or secret Instagram account (the word comes from “Fake Instagram”). Many children run a second, hidden account to keep their real online activity away from parents. It is worth having a calm conversation about this, not as an accusation, but just letting your child know you are aware it exists.
- Set screen time limits. Both iPhones and Android phones have free built-in tools for this in Settings.
- Talk about what “stranger danger” looks like online. Adults asking children to keep secrets or move to private chats are red flags, just like they would be in real life.
How to Have the Conversation
The biggest mistake parents make is turning this into an interrogation. Children shut down fast when they feel accused.
Treat it like any other conversation you would have with your child. Ask about their day online the same way you ask about school. Make it normal. If they know you are curious and not angry, they are more likely to tell you when something feels wrong.
You do not need to know every app or every trend. You just need your child to know they can come to you.
One Last Thing
More trials are coming. A separate case in Los Angeles is looking at whether Instagram was designed to be addictive for young people, like a slot machine that never runs out of coins.
The apps are not going anywhere soon. But you can be the person who controls how and when your child uses them. That matters more than any court case.
