Instagram releases tools for parents to track teens' activity

Instagram has introduced new tools that parents can use to help monitor and limit their children's use of the photo-sharing app, after months of disclosures that raised concerns about the platform's impact on younger users.

The tools give parents the ability to see how much time their children spend on Instagram. It also allows them to set limits on the use of the platform, as well as to see which accounts they follow or follow.

The options are currently available to parents in the US, with plans to roll it out globally in the coming months.

The new options were previously announced in a post from Adam Mosseri late last year. In addition to announcing some of the features that were introduced at the time.

In addition, these features targeted teen users directly, such as urging them to take a break after a specified period of time.

Frances Hoggin last year leaked hundreds of internal documents, including some that showed the company was aware of the ways Instagram could harm mental health, particularly among teenage girls.

Lawmakers questioned executives from Facebook and Instagram in hearings about these and other documents. The company has temporarily halted a plan to release a version of the platform for children under the age of 13.