Maintaining a limited user profile for social networking system users unable to establish a user profile

A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable storage medium having instructions encoded thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to:

• receive a request from a user of a social networking system to create a limited user profile for an additional user of a particular age;
• determine that the additional user does not satisfy one or more criteria for maintaining a user profile via the social networking system, the determining based in part on a comparison of a threshold age limit with the particular age of the additional user;
• determine that the additional user is a child based on the determination not satisfying the one or more criteria;
• responsive to determining that the additional user is a child,
• identify one or more permissions associated with the limited user profile for the additional user by the user, the identified one or more permissions specifying fewer permissions than associated with a user profile maintained by the social networking system,
• determine one or more privacy settings associated with the limited user profile for the additional user by the user, a privacy setting associated with a type of interaction with the limited user profile and identifying a user who is able to authorize the type of interaction with the limited user profile,
• generate the limited user profile for the additional user based at least in part on information included in the request, the identified one or more permissions, and the determined one or more privacy settings, and
• store the limited user profile for the additional user and a connection between the limited user profile for the additional user and the user;
• and
• associate the additional user with content maintained by the social networking system in response to approval from a user capable of authorizing the association as specified in the one or more privacy settings.