Meta Expands Alerts for Parents About Teen Self-Harm Searches

Meta is extending its parental safety notifications to Facebook, adding to alerts already available for supervised teen accounts on Instagram. Parents may be notified when a teen makes several queries about suicide or self-injury within a brief period, or has a conversation with Meta AI that suggests possible risk of self-harm or suicide.

Meta has not publicly specified the precise threshold for repeated searches. The company has said it uses several searches within a short span as a trigger and aims to avoid alerts that are not warranted.

Notifications may arrive by text, email or WhatsApp, depending on the contact details available, and through an alert in the parent’s app. They do not reveal the teen’s exact search terms or the contents of an AI conversation. Parents are instead directed to resources intended to help them talk with their teen and find support.

The alerts are part of Meta’s supervised teen accounts, which give caregivers greater control over privacy settings and are designed to limit exposure to sensitive material and interactions with adults. Vicki Shotbolt, chief executive of Parent Zone, called the expanded alerts an important step in giving parents information to support their teens.

People in the United States who are struggling or in crisis can call or text 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. The Crisis Text Line can also be reached by texting HOME to 741741.