In 2021, the Wall Street Journal revealed how Meta Platforms –the company behind Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp–, was aware of how its applications impacted the mental health of adolescents, particularly young girls.

“When that information reached us, it was partly an explanation for things we were already seeing in practice,” said Viviana Quintero, psychologist and expert in digital child safety, during her visit to the Center for Early Childhood at Tecnológico de Monterrey.

Quintero recalled how common it was to see 14 or 15-year-old children who reported feeling bad without knowing why. Normally, these were children who used platforms like Instagram “intensively.” “It was an effect of negative social comparison,” she explained.

The Arrival of AI has Made Solutions Even More Complicated

Quintero was part of a panel organized at Tec in collaboration with UNESCO and moderated by Adriana Gidi, associate director of the Center of Early Childhood, to discuss the effects of technology on children.

The expert panel highlighted how the arrival of artificial intelligence has radically transformed the digital landscape. One recent example comes from Reuters news agency which in August 2025 published internal documents showing how Meta’s policies have allowed AI chatbots to maintain “romantic or sensual” conversations with minors, offer false medical information, and encourage users to adopt racist positions.

“Sometimes it feels like we’re repeating history,” Quintero said. “It’s worth really questioning what interests lie behind these technological developments.”

AI Doesn’t know What’s Best for Minors

Quintero’s main message was to caregivers who she says have an indispensable role in protecting children and adolescents online, especially with the prevalence of AI.

Her experience has allowed her to observe firsthand how technological evolution has made it more difficult to protect minors on the internet.

“Artificial intelligence has no emotions. It does understand in the same way we do, it doesn’t understand contexts,” Quintero explained. “Artificial intelligence doesn’t know what’s best for children and adolescents.”

The Alarming Cases of “Nudification” and Sharenting

The expanded capabilities of AI come with fundamental limitations that worry experts. One of the most alarming cases Quintero describes involves “nudification” applications that use artificial intelligence.

“A person under 18 was browsing Instagram and this application appeared that creates images with AI,” she recounted. What they found was a tool that could digitally undress people in photographs.

This type of technology represents a particular risk when combined with the phenomenon of “sharenting” – parents who share images of their children on social networks. “Many of these images are taken out of context, placed in highly sexualized environments, or are modified through deepfakes,” Quintero warned.

Deepfakes refer to AI-produced images or videos that look highly realistic and in many corners of the internet, are used to share sexualized content. To minimize risk, Quintero recommends limiting the channels where parents share images of their children, whether through private groups with friends and family or posting temporarily through reels or stories which are deleted after 24 hours.

The Impact on Child Development

Beyond the immediate security risks, Quintero also raises concerns about how this emerging technology is affecting children’s cognitive development.

Algorithmic systems designed to maximize engagement are “training brains to scatter attention,” when one of the objectives of child development should be for children to focus on one thing at a time for as long as possible.

One of Quintero’s most forceful criticisms is the disparity between corporate policies announced by these social media companies and the realities of user experience.

“On paper everything looks perfect, everyone complies, everyone protects, everyone cares,” she said. “But what we find in practice is that digital platforms, although they have mass user reach in terms of information, they don’t worry about the mass protection of those users.“

Understanding “the Three Cs” and Advice for Caregivers

The psychologist also spoke about Te Protejo Colombia, a virtual helpline launched in 2012 to report cases of child sexual abuse and exploitation on digital platforms. Its success led to a similar model in other countries, like Mexico, where Fundación Pas has implemented a helpline based on training with the Colombian experts.

Quintero explained the categorization known as “the three Cs” of digital risks: content (what children see), contacts (who they interact with), and conduct (what they do online). In each of these categories, artificial intelligence has intensified latent risks.

She also offered concrete advice based on recommendations from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

• Before age two, fewer screens is best. Quintero emphasized that this means all types of screens: television, tablets, computers.
• For social networks, there’s also a clear limit: “before age 13 we shouldn’t give social networks to children because they can’t identify the nature, veracity, and intentionality of content.” In 2024, Australia became the first country to approve a law restricting social media for minors under 16.
• She also advises setting time limits: no devices one hour before going to sleep or after waking up. Ideally, these should only be used in designated places, not in bed or behind closed doors.
• For Quintero, the solution doesn’t reside solely in government regulation or corporate decisions, but in a comprehensive approach that involves families, educators, and society in general. “When we access the internet, we need to stay connected,” she emphasizes. “Disconnected internet users are the greatest risk we have for innovation and technological development.”

In the end, Quintero recognizes the reality of our digital era: “We love being on screens, but screens aren’t the only thing we have in life.”

Her work represents an effort to find balance between taking advantage of technology’s opportunities and protecting the most vulnerable from its risks.

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