Sept 17 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms ( META ) is rolling

out special accounts with new privacy settings for teenaged

Instagram users, it said on Tuesday, its latest effort to limit

their exposure to harmful content on its apps amid regulatory

pressure.

The social media firm said it will port all designated

accounts automatically to teen accounts, which will be private

accounts by default.

Users of such accounts can only be messaged and tagged by

accounts they follow or are already connected to, while

sensitive content settings will be dialed to the most

restrictive available.

Users under 16 years of age can change the default settings

only with a parent's permission. Parents will also get a suite

of settings to monitor who their children are engaging with and

limit their use of the app.

Several studies have linked social media use to higher

levels of depression, anxiety and learning disabilities,

particularly in young users.

Meta, ByteDance's TikTok and Google's YouTube

already face hundreds of lawsuits filed on behalf of children

and school districts about the addictive nature of social media.

Last year, 33 U.S. states including California and New York sued

the company for misleading the public about the dangers of its

platforms.

Top platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok,

allow users who are 13 years of age and above to sign up.

Meta's move comes three years after it abandoned development

on a version of the Instagram app meant for teenagers, after

lawmakers and advocacy groups urged the company to drop it,

citing safety concerns.

In July, the U.S. Senate advanced two online safety bills -

The Kids Online Safety Act and The Children and Teens' Online

Privacy Protection Act - that would force social media companies

to take responsibility for how their platforms affect children

and teens.

Meta said it will place the identified users into teen

accounts within 60 days in the U.S., UK, Canada and Australia,

and in the European Union later this year. Teens around the

world will start to get teen accounts in January.