Social media giant Facebook recently rolled out a new messenger, this time, for kids younger than 13 years old, Monday, December 4.
Facebook, which has more than 2 billion users, is now “expanding into an untapped market.” According to a Reuters report, the app works like usual, send photos, videos, and video chat, but is controlled by a parent’s Facebook account, which needs to be approved by the said supervising account. The same report says that this is Facebook’s way of hooking kids at an early age, midst its competition like Snapchat.
Research shows that kids below the age of 13 are already using technology and they are also using teen and adult apps by simply faking their age upon registration. Facebook believes that this variety of the Messenger app will not only protect children from talking to strangers or be used for human trafficking, but also a way to monitor kids’ usage and online behavior.
Source: Bangkok Post