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Instagram is Automatically Changing Some Accounts to Private The move is designed to prevent users from having "to deal with unwanted DMs or comments from strangers."

By Emily Rella

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

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Instagram announced this week that new users under the age of 16 will be given private accounts by default.

Though young users will still have the option to make their accounts private after completing sign-up, the Facebook-owned social media application says it has data proving teens want private accounts.

"Historically, we asked young people to choose between a public account or a private account when they signed up for Instagram, but our recent research showed that they appreciate a more private experience. During testing, eight out of ten young people accepted the private default settings during sign-up," said a Tuesday release from the company.

Related: Everything You Need to Know About Instagram Shadowbans

The move is designed to prevent young users from having "to deal with unwanted DMs or comments from strangers" while still allowing them to "easily make new friends and keep up with their family."

Other changes were made this week in service of young users' protection, too: It will now be harder for potentially suspicious accounts to find young users on the app and advertisers will have fewer options to reach young people with ads.

Emily Rella

Senior News Writer

Emily Rella is a Senior News Writer at Entrepreneur.com. Previously, she was an editor at Verizon Media. Her coverage spans features, business, lifestyle, tech, entertainment, and lifestyle. She is a 2015 graduate of Boston College and a Ridgefield, CT native. Find her on Twitter at @EmilyKRella.

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