Meta has reopened its doors for minors interested in its virtual services, with a new parent-approved entry into the platform’s Horizon Worlds.
Kids ages 10 to 12 (whom Meta calls “preteens”) with parent-controlled Meta accounts can request access to certain virtual experiences, most of which are social. Designed for ages, “worlds” include areas like “Space Station,” a futuristic space where users dress up as astronauts, and “Aquarium,” an undersea adventure with marine life.
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“Worlds gives pre-teens access to a variety of fun, engaging, and age-appropriate places to hang out with friends and family wherever they are, on headset or mobile,” Mehta wrote. “And by opening up access to Worlds to pre-teens (with parental permission, of course), we’re inspiring creators to create even more age-appropriate and enriching experiences.”
This is an expansion of new parental rights granted last month, which allow parents or caregivers to individually add approved contacts to their underage children’s accounts. Previously, Meta Horizon’s social interactions, like chat and calling, were only available to accounts marked as 13+.
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The new update also includes age restrictions for each world (“10+, 13+, 18+”), along with customizable settings for parents. According to Meta, the virtual spaces were designed in collaboration with third parties as part of a new report from Trust, Transparency & Control Labs (TTC) on the reintroduction of minors into digital experiences.
Originally part of Meta’s larger Metaverse and Meta Quest products in the emerging VR world, Horizon Worlds was later released for mobile and desktop users in 2023. A year prior to that, Meta overhauled its parental controls for VR Quest users after parents and watchdog groups warned about an increasing number of inappropriate interactions, hate speech and harassment of minors.
Outside of the VR world, Meta has been criticized for “pursuing” users under the age of 13 despite concerns about their mental health and safety, and continues to navigate the complicated waters of lawsuits and a federal investigation.
Access to New Horizons is subject to additional safeguards to ease these fears, including the disabling of voice chat, personal boundaries for avatars, and the invisibility of underage accounts.
