US Senators Blackburn, Blumenthal send letter to Meta requesting Instagram shut down map feature

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – Two U.S. Senators sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg requesting he shut down the newly added map feature on Instagram. U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said the new feature could put children’s safety at risk by exposing their location to dangerous people, such as predators and traffickers. The letter said in part: “Instagram’s new Map feature will share a user’s last active location with other individuals using the application. While Meta has argued that the feature is inactive unless users opt in to sharing their location, some consumers have reported that their location was automatically shared without their consent. This addition is a cause of particular concern for us when it comes to children and teens who are active on Instagram. Meta’s platforms have been consciously designed to prioritize profit over the protection of its most vulnerable users: our children. While Meta has argued that parents with supervision settings on their children’s accounts have control over their location settings, it is clear that existing parental controls are not sufficient. Meta has made it difficult for parents to fully understand or utilize parental controls, leading to abuse, exploitation, and victimization of
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