What the Tech: Could your children have fake Instagram accounts?
BY JAMEY TUCKER, Consumer Tech Reporter
Many parents keep an eye on their children’s social media use, checking Instagram accounts and setting restrictions on their phones.
But those efforts may not go far enough. Kids can easily create and hide a second account that parents never see. There is even a name for it. A “finsta,” short for fake Instagram.
What is a finsta
A finsta is a secondary Instagram account, often hidden from parents and sometimes even from friends.
It can be used to:
● Avoid parental controls
● Interact with people parents would not approve of
● View or share content without restrictions
Creating one is simple.
A child can sign up with a different email and select an older age. That removes many of the built-in protections designed for younger users.
“It’s not difficult at all,” said Holly Grosshans with Common Sense Media. “Right now, all you have to do is click that you’re over the age of 18, and you’re done.”
In testing, a newly created account with an adult age quickly began receiving follow requests, including from accounts promoting adult content.
Why protections do not always work
Instagram has added protections for teen accounts.
These include:
● Private accounts by default
● Limits on messages from strangers
● Content restrictions
● Parental supervision tools
But those safeguards only apply if the account is set up as a teen account.
A second account created with an older age can bypass those limits entirely.
“That’s where they can be having private conversations and looking at whatever content they want, and it’s not being monitored at all,” Grosshans said.
How kids hide accounts
Hidden accounts are often difficult for parents to find.
Kids may:
● Change the app icon
● Move apps into folders
● Use different usernames or emails
● Log out of accounts before handing over their phone
That means even a careful phone check may not reveal everything.
“The account you can see may not be the only one,” Grosshans said.
What parents can do
Experts say the most effective protection still comes from staying involved.
Parents can:
● Check privacy settings on every account
● Look through all apps on a phone, not just the home screen
● Make sure accounts are set to private
● Talk regularly about who their children are interacting with
Grosshans says age verification would make a bigger difference.
“It’s really important to know how old everyone is,” she said. “So a 45-year-old isn’t pretending to be 13, and a 13-year-old isn’t pretending to be 19.”
A widespread issue
Some surveys suggest as many as 40 percent of pre-teens have secret accounts used to hide activity from parents.
And it is not limited to Instagram. Many of these hidden accounts exist on gaming platforms and other apps as well.
The takeaway for parents is simple.
Even if you are checking your child’s account, you may not be seeing the whole picture.
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