Meta survey found 19% of young teen Instagram users saw unwanted nude or sexual images

WASHINGTON — Nearly 1 in 5 users aged 13 to 15 told Meta that they saw “nudity or sexual images on Instagram” that they didn’t want to view, according to a court filing. The document, made public on Friday as part of a federal lawsuit in California and reviewed by Reuters, includes portions of a March 2025 deposition of Instagram head Adam Mosseri. Mosseri said the company does not share survey results “in general,” adding that self-reported surveys are “notoriously problematic,” according to the deposition. Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram, is facing allegations from global leaders that the company’s products harm young users. In the U.S., thousands of lawsuits in federal and state court accuse the company of designing addictive products and fueling a mental-health crisis for minors. The statistic on explicit images came from a survey of Instagram users about their experiences on the platform, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said, and not a review of posts themselves. The company in late 2025 said it would remove images and videos “containing nudity or explicit se