A recent court filing has revealed that nearly one in five Instagram users aged 13 to 15 reported seeing nudity or sexual images they did not want to view, according to a March 2025 deposition of Instagram head Adam Mosseri. The disclosure came as part of a federal lawsuit in California, highlighting ongoing concerns over the safety of minors on social media. The survey, conducted in 2021, was self-reported and focused on user experiences rather than a review of content posted on the platform.
Meta, which owns Instagram and Facebook, is facing mounting legal pressure globally, with thousands of lawsuits alleging that its products are addictive and contribute to a mental health crisis among minors. The deposition also noted that about 8 percent of users aged 13 to 15 reported witnessing someone harm themselves or threaten self-harm on Instagram, raising further alarm over the platform’s impact on vulnerable teenagers.
Mosseri acknowledged in his deposition that most sexually explicit content encountered by minors was shared via private messages and emphasized that Meta must balance safety with user privacy, noting that “a lot of people don’t want us reading their messages.” In response, Meta has implemented policies to remove images and videos containing nudity or explicit sexual activity for teen users, while allowing exceptions for medical or educational content.
A Meta spokesperson, Andy Stone, stressed that the company remains committed to improving user safety, stating, “We’re proud of the progress we’ve made, and we’re always working to do better.” Nevertheless, the court documents underscore the ongoing challenge for social media companies in protecting minors while respecting privacy, as legal and public scrutiny intensifies around Instagram’s role in exposing young users to harmful content.
