Instagram to notify parents if teens repeatedly search for suicide or self-harm content

New Delhi: Instagram will begin sending alerts to parents whose teenagers repeatedly search for terms related to suicide or self-harm within a short period. The notifications, part of the platform’s parental supervision tools, are intended to help parents identify when their teen may need support.

The alerts will initially be available in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and Canada, with a wider rollout planned later in 2026. Parents will be notified via in-app messages, email, text or WhatsApp, depending on the contact information provided. Each alert includes resources designed to assist parents in discussing sensitive topics with their teen.

“When a young person searches about suicide or self-harm, empowering a parent to step in can be extremely important. The fact that Meta has now built this in is a meaningful step forward and is the kind of change that child safety experts have been pushing for,” said Dr Sameer Hinduja, Co-Director of the Cyberbullying Research Center.

Vicki Shotbolt, CEO of Parent Zone, added, “It’s vital that parents have the information they need to support their teens. This is a really important step that should help give parents greater peace of mind, if their teen is actively trying to look for this type of harmful content on Instagram, they’ll know about it.”

Instagram said that most teens do not search for suicide or self-harm content, and attempts to do so are blocked by the platform, which directs users to local organisations and helplines. The alerts are based on repeated searches and a threshold designed to avoid unnecessary notifications.

The platform plans to expand similar alerts to AI interactions in the future, notifying parents if teens engage in conversations with AI about suicide or self-harm.

These new alerts build on Instagram’s existing protections for teen accounts, which include blocked searches, content moderation, and support for users at imminent risk of harm.