April 8 (Reuters) - Meta Platforms ( META ) is rolling out its "Teen Accounts" feature

to Facebook and Messenger on Tuesday, as it faces sustained criticism about not doing enough to

protect young users from online harms.

The enhanced privacy and parental controls, which were introduced on Instagram last year,

will address concerns about how teens are spending their time on social media, the company said.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT

Meta's expansion of safety features for teens comes as some lawmakers say they plan to press

ahead with proposed legislation, such as the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), seeking to protect

children from social media harms.

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.

In 2023, 33 U.S. states including California and New York sued the company for misleading

the public about the dangers of its platforms.

CONTEXT

Meta said teens under 16 will require parental permission before they can go live and

disable a feature that automatically blurs images potentially containing nudity in direct

messages.

"We will start including these updates in the next couple of months," the company said.

In July 2024, the U.S. Senate advanced two online safety bills - KOSA 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.

The Republican-led House declined to bring KOSA up for a vote last year, but suggested at a

committee hearing late last month that they still plan to press ahead with new laws to protect

kids online.

Top platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, allow users who are 13 years of age

and above to sign up.