Instagram’s algorithm routinely serves up sexually charged videos featuring scantily-clad sex content creators to teen users as young as 13, according to the alarming results of a seven-month analysis that were published Thursday.
The Wall Street Journal and a Northeastern University researcher probed the Mark Zuckerberg-led app’s filters by creating accounts posing as fictional 13-year-olds and scrolling Instagram’s Reels video feed – which reportedly began showcasing suggesting content almost immediately.
At first, the racy videos included women dancing suggestively or showcasing their breasts, the report said.
As the accounts watched those videos while skipping others, the content became more graphic – with videos featuring online sex workers who promised to send nude images to viewers appearing in “less than 20 minutes,” according to the Journal.
In one set of tests conducted in June, the Journal said Instagram began showing “video after video about anal sex” to a fictional 13-year-old who previously watched videos about women on the Reels feed.
In other cases, the recommended algorithm served up videos of women caressing their bodies, mimicking sex acts or even flashing their genitalia to the camera, the Journal said.
