Meta whistleblower exposes Instagram's harm to teens and calls for social media regulation

Arturo Béjar, a former engineering director at Facebook and consultant for Meta, testified before Congress about the harms of Instagram to teens, recounting his own daughter's experiences with unwanted sexual advances and harassment on the platform. Béjar criticized Meta executives, including Mark Zuckerberg, for knowing about the harms but failing to make meaningful changes. He called for reforms in how Meta polices its platforms, addressing harassment and unwanted advances even if they don't violate existing policies. Béjar also highlighted user surveys showing that a significant number of young Instagram users have experienced such harms. The testimony comes amid a push in Congress to regulate social media and protect children online.