Gov. Gavin Newsom of California signed legislation on Friday aimed at protecting minors from social media addiction amid growing concerns about the impact of technology on adolescents’ mental health.

The law effectively requires tech companies to make posts on feeds of minors’ social media accounts appear in chronological order as a default, rather than allowing algorithms to curate them to maximize engagement. Tech companies that already require assurances of the age of a user will have to apply the protections starting next year; otherwise, they will have until 2027 to begin determining which of their users are minors, and apply the protections accordingly.

The bill also prohibits companies from sending notifications to people under 18 during school hours, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays from September through May, and during sleep hours, between midnight and 6 a.m. The default settings can be changed with the consent of a parent or guardian.

“Every parent knows the harm social media addiction can inflict on their children — isolation from human contact, stress and anxiety, and endless hours wasted late into the night,” Mr. Newsom, who has four school-age children, said in a statement on Friday.

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The move, targeting powerful tech interests in the nation’s most populous state, is part of a nationwide effort to address concern over cellphone and social media use among adolescents. Amid reports of cyberbullying and distraction in classrooms, at least eight states, including Florida and Indiana, have already enacted restrictions on the use of cellphones in school settings. New York put in place a similar law aimed at social media addiction this year.

New privacy settings Instagram plans to default all new and existing accounts set up by people who have indicated they are under 18 years old to “private mode.” Here’s what to know about the change.

What is ‘Private Mode’? With this change, an account holder must approve new followers before they can see, like or comment on their posts. It would also turn off notifications between 10 p.m. and 7 a.m.

Are there age-specific changes? Account holders who are 16 or 17 will be able to make their accounts public and change other default settings by themselves. But children under 16 will need a parent’s permission to alter the privacy default, sleep mode and other restrictions.

Further protections The app will also limit sensitive content for minors, such as nudity or discussions about self-harm, and prevent direct messages from people they don’t follow — existing restrictions that the company had previously announced.

Can teens lie? Some teens may try to circumvent the privacy changes by setting up new Instagram accounts with older birth dates. The app said it would require these users to verify their age in various ways, such as by sending in a selfie video that will be analyzed by facial age estimation technology.

What is the parental supervision tool? Parents can use a supervision tool to set daily time limits on their teen’s app's use. New features will include a list of people their child has recently messaged as well as content topics their child has elected to see more of.

In Junewingo, Governor Newsom also called for a ban on smartphone use in all public schools in California. Legislation now before him includes a requirement that the schools devise a policy by July 1, 2026, to limit or prohibit smartphones during the school day, though most school districts already have cellphone policies.

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