Social Media Safety Features Fail at Least 50% of the Time, Study Finds
A study by New York University and Northeastern University found that at least half of the safety features designed to protect children on Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, and YouTube fail to work as advertised. Researchers from the Heat Initiative and Cybersafety Research Center reported that these platforms struggle to block adult-to-minor messaging and filter harmful content.
The research team tested 86 specific security functions across the four platforms. According to the findings, every platform analyzed had a failure rate of 50% or higher for the features they publicly promote. These failures include the inability to prevent adults from messaging minors and failures in blocking underage accounts from accessing harmful material.
How did the safety tests fail?
Researchers simulated real-world interactions by creating fake accounts for children of various ages and adults. The study focused on three distinct scenarios: a child using the platform normally, a teenager attempting to bypass safety settings, and a “malicious adult” trying to circumvent protections on a teen’s account.
The study classified a feature as a failure if it met any of three criteria: it was too difficult to find within the settings menus, it didn’t perform the action described in the platform’s documentation, or the feature was entirely missing from the platform.
What specific failures were found on Snapchat, Instagram, and TikTok?
The tests revealed critical gaps in how platforms isolate minors from adult contact and dangerous content:
- Snapchat: Adult accounts were able to search for, locate, and message child accounts without any restrictions.
- Instagram: Teen accounts successfully sent messages to adults they didn’t follow without receiving any system warnings.
- TikTok: The platform’s algorithm suggested searches related to anorexia to adolescent accounts.
While the parent companies—Snap, Meta, and YouTube—contested the study’s results, The New York Times reported that it was able to replicate the researchers’ findings.
How are social media companies responding?
Meta has defended its current infrastructure, specifically citing the rollout of “Teen Accounts.” A Meta spokesperson stated that these accounts ensure teens see less sensitive content, experience fewer unwanted contacts, and spend less time on Instagram during overnight hours.
Despite these updates, the NYU and Northeastern study suggests a gap remains between the marketing of these “safe spaces” and the actual technical implementation of the security tools.
What legal and regulatory actions are following these findings?
The technical failures come as platforms face a wave of litigation from individuals and school districts claiming the platforms caused direct harm to minors. This has accelerated legislative action globally to limit child access to social media.
Australia has recently moved to strengthen its position by increasing the maximum fines for companies that fail to comply with age-verification or safety mandates. Experts argue that these failures prove a need for stricter regulatory oversight to ensure companies meet the safety standards they promise to the public.
| Platform | Primary Failure Identified |
|---|---|
| Snapchat | Unrestricted adult-to-child messaging |
| Teens messaging unfollowed adults without warnings | |
| TikTok | Algorithmic suggestions of eating disorder content |
As privacy becomes a central product feature—seen in updates like WhatsApp’s move toward usernames to hide phone numbers—the industry continues to struggle with the fundamental challenge of verifying age and enforcing boundaries between adults and minors.