Meta Permits Preteen Access to Horizon Worlds with Parental Consent

Meta is now opening the doors for younger users to dive into its virtual reality platform, Horizon Worlds, but only under the careful watch of their parents. Preteens aged 10 to 12 can now, with parental control, explore various experiences on the platform—though, as expected, there are some restrictions in place to ensure their safety.

In this latest announcement, Meta shared that parents will be given the power to decide which age-appropriate worlds their children can access. Think of places like The Space Station or The Aquarium, or engaging games like Spy School racing. Kids can either put in a request for the worlds they want to visit, or parents can review the options and choose for themselves which ones to approve.

To keep youngsters safe, Meta has rolled out some new protective measures. A key feature is a rating system categorizing VR worlds as 10+, 13+, or 18+, providing parents with a handy way to green-light all worlds suitable for 10-year-olds in one go—ensuring the 18+ worlds stay hidden from younger users. Plus, the usual follower suggestions have been removed, and preteens’ online status is set to “offline” by default unless a parent opts to change it.

Furthermore, Meta has installed a “Personal Boundary” feature that’s always active, ensuring avatars maintain a two-foot bubble around them in the virtual space to prevent others from getting too close.

This move follows Meta’s previous update introducing the need for parents to approve contacts for their children, ensuring they can only chat with or invite safe options into their VR escapades. Additionally, users of Meta Quest 2 or 3 headsets now need to confirm their birthday before accessing the device, an added level of age verification.

Introduced in June 2023, parent-managed accounts for preteens are still met with skepticism by some guardians. Despite Meta’s enhanced safeguards, worries linger about how effectively the company can protect young users, especially following allegations concerning the company’s handling of this age group on its platforms.

Earlier this year, Meta was criticized for deliberately marketing its messaging services to underage users, even when it was aware of inappropriate interactions happening between adults and children. This was highlighted in a legal case brought by the New Mexico Department of Justice. Similarly, a separate lawsuit involving 42 U.S. state attorneys accuses Meta of crafting its products to draw in youngsters, with potential negative effects on their mental health.