Meta is adding parental supervision tools to Threads, allowing parents and guardians to manage how teenagers use the social platform. The controls will begin rolling out in the United States next week before expanding globally by the end of 2026.
The update arrives three years after Threads launched in July 2023. The platform reached 500 million monthly active users in June, according to Meta.
Parents Can Set Daily Time Limits
Through Meta’s Family Center, parents will be able to see how much time their teenager spent on Threads each day during the previous week. They can also view the teenager’s average daily usage for that period.
Parents can set a daily time limit and prevent access during selected hours or days. The limit will cover total usage across devices, including phones and computers, rather than applying separately to each device.
The controls also allow parents to manage sleep mode. Threads already mutes notifications and activates automatic replies for teenagers between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m., but parents can extend or adjust those hours.
Privacy Settings Require Parental Approval
Parents will be able to control who can tag their teenager in Threads posts. They can also manage whether teenagers younger than 16 may weaken privacy and content protections applied automatically to their accounts.
Teen accounts on Threads are private by default and include restrictions on the content recommended to younger users. Meta said the new supervision options will add parental oversight to those existing protections through its official Threads announcement.
Meta recently consolidated supervision tools for Instagram, Facebook, Messenger and Meta Horizon within Family Center. Parents can now manage several connected accounts from the same location rather than visiting separate settings in each application.
Meta Faces Continued Child Safety Scrutiny
The rollout comes as Meta faces regulatory investigations and lawsuits concerning the effects of social media on younger users. US states have accused the company of misleading the public about safety risks, while regulators in Europe are examining features such as autoplay and infinite scrolling.
Meta has also expanded Teen Account protections across Facebook and Messenger. Those measures include stronger privacy defaults and parental permission requirements for teenagers under 16 who want to reduce certain safeguards.
Threads supervision will initially be available only in the United States. Meta said parents and teenagers must establish supervision through Family Center before the new controls can be used.
Featured image credits: Syllaby.io
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