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Meta AI now alerts parents to teen self-harm chats
Meta will notify parents if teen chats with Meta AI suggest self-harm or suicide, starting in four countries with a wider rollout due by year-end.
Image: Engadget
Meta is adding a new safeguard for teens: parents and guardians can now be alerted if a minor’s conversation with Meta AI suggests self-harm or suicide.
The change expands protections Meta had already introduced a few months ago, when it began showing guardians the topics of their teens' AI conversations. Now, if an underage user discusses suicide or self-harm, Meta AI will not only direct them to crisis helplines and encourage them to contact a trusted adult, but will also proactively notify the teen’s supervising parent or guardian.
Meta said it built a dedicated AI system to detect these conversations, but every flagged chat will be manually reviewed before an alert is sent. The company says that review is meant to avoid causing unnecessary panic, though it will still err on the side of caution and send a notification even when a teen’s intent appears ambiguous to the human reviewer.
The feature is live now for parents using Instagram parental supervision in the US, UK, Australia and Canada. Meta says it will expand to everyone using parental supervision worldwide by the end of the year.
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The company is also developing a separate capability to contact emergency services if a conversation with Meta AI indicates that a user may be at imminent risk of taking their own life, whether that user is a minor or an adult.
The move follows a similar safety feature announced by OpenAI in May. Its Trusted Contact for ChatGPT lets users nominate a friend the company can contact if they appear to be at risk of harming themselves.
Meta is also extending its Limited Content setting to Meta AI interactions. If a parent has enabled Limited Content on Instagram, which filters sensitive material such as mature visuals and self-harm, their child’s AI interactions will also be more restricted.
If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. The line is open 24/7, and online chat is also available.
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via Engadget
