YouTube Tightens Restrictions for Underage Users
**California:** YouTube has strengthened its restrictions for underage users by expanding parental controls to make the platform safer and more constructive for young audiences.
According to the Google-owned video-sharing platform, parents can now set limits on how much time their teenage children spend watching YouTube Shorts. The available options include 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes, one hour, and two hours.
Parents will also have the option to completely turn off the Shorts feed, allowing them to block access to Shorts for an entire day.
The new features include updated guidelines to promote age-appropriate and educational content. Teen users will be encouraged to watch videos from educational channels such as Khan Academy Kids, Crash Course Kids, and TED-Ed.
YouTube stated that these measures were developed in consultation with the Youth Advisory Board, UCLA’s Center for Scholars and Storytellers, the American Psychological Association, and Boston Children’s Hospital.
In addition, parents will now be able to easily create accounts for their children, which will automatically come with safe default settings. The mobile app will also allow users to switch between accounts with just a few clicks.
YouTube said the aim of these new features is to give parents greater control and provide a safer, more positive digital environment for teenage users.
