Instagram and Facebook introduce more limits on targeting young people with ads

  • Meta is changing how its apps handle advertising and its younger users.
  • Under new rules, advertisers on Facebook and Instagram won’t be able to use as much personalised data to target advertising to teenagers.
  • From next month, Meta will remove the option for targeted ads to teenage users based on gender.
  • The company will also end advertising to target personalised ads to users under 18 based on their in-app activity.
  • In the next two months, Instagram and Facebook are also bringing out new controls for teen users enabling them to “see less” of a specific topic.
  • For more on this story, please visit the Tech Crunch website.

TikTok boss meets EU officials as scrutiny intensifies

  • TikTok’s CEO, met with EU officials about new digital regulations as the app faces scrutiny over misinformation, privacy and cybersecurity.
  • Concerns discussed ranged from child safety to investigations into user data being shared to China which is a breach of European privacy rules.
  • The commissioner for values and transparency has said: “I count on TikTok to fully execute its commitments to go the extra mile in respecting EU law and regaining trust of European regulators.”
  • TikTok’s CEO is scheduled for a video meeting with the commissioner for digital policy on the 19th of January.
  • For more on this story, please visit the Independent’s website.

Viewers of horror movie ‘M3GAN’ confused by age rating

  • Horror movie, M3GAN, is about a killer robot that looks like a female doll.
  • The Independent reports that it is being viewed by a much younger crowd than would usually see a horror film.
  • This is due to it becoming an ‘instant favourite’ of users on TikTok and it being widely shared by TikTok users.
  • In the UK, the BBFC gave the movie a rating of ‘15’ due to “strong threat, violence and bloody images”.
  • It has been revealed that the film which is PG13 in the US was designed to be more graphic, but had some content erased to lure in a younger audience.
  • For more on this story, please visit the Independent’s website.

Antipsychotic prescriptions for children and young people rose between 2000-2019

  • The proportion of children and young people who are prescribed antipsychotics has almost doubled in England between 2000 and 2019.
  • The National Institute for Clinical Excellence has approved the use of some antipsychotics for under 18s with psychosis or aggressive behaviour from a disorder.
  • A study by the University of Manchester’s Centre for Women’s Mental Health suggests they are prescribed for an increasing broad list of reasons – including autism.
  • Scientists argue the increasing use of antipsychotics is a cause for concern as their safety in children, who are continually developing, is not fully established.
  • For more, go to the National’s website.

At least 271,000 people homeless on any given night in 2022

  • Homelessness charity, Shelter, have said that at least 271,000 people were homeless in England on any given night in 2022.
  • This is equivalent to one in 208 people, with almost half (at around 123,000) of these being children.
  • London had the highest rate, with around one in 58 people homeless.
  • For the full story, go to the Independent’s website.