Pinterest CEO says teens under 16 should be banned from social media (but not Pinterest)

Pinterest’s CEO has thrown his help behind an Australia measure banning social media for youthful teenagers and is asking for governments around the globe to implement comparable bans. “Social media, because it’s configured in the present day, isn’t secure for younger folks underneath 16,” Prepared writes in a chunk published by Time. “We want a transparent commonplace: no social media for teenagers underneath 16, backed by actual enforcement, and accountability for cell phone working methods and the apps that run on them.”

Prepared is without doubt one of the highest-profile tech CEOs to come back out in favor of a broad ban on social media for teenagers. Which will additionally appear to be a daring stance for somebody who runs a platform with a person base that is greater than 50 p.c Gen Z, however Prepared would not assume that ban ought to apply to Pinterest. Pinterest, as he notes, already bars teenagers underneath 16 from accessing messaging options and different social options. It additionally makes teen accounts personal by default.

A spokesperson for Pinterest confirmed the corporate has no plans to alter its personal insurance policies concerning customers underneath 16, and stated Pinterest considers itself a “visible search platform” not social media. Pinterest, like most social media and social media-adjacent corporations, would not enable customers underneath 13 to enroll.

Social media or not, Pinterest has encountered youngster safety-related points up to now. In 2023, NBC Information reported that Pinterest’s recommendation algorithm was surfacing pictures and movies of younger ladies to adults who have been “searching for” such content material. A few of these customers had created Pinterest boards that includes photos of younger ladies with titles like “horny little ladies,” their investigation discovered. The corporate made profiles for teenagers underneath 16 personal and “not discoverable” six months later.

In keeping with Prepared, Pinterest’s recognition with youthful customers is proof its insurance policies are additionally good for the corporate’s enterprise. “Our expertise exhibits that prioritizing security and well-being doesn’t push younger folks away; it builds belief,” he writes.