WhatsApp rolls out new parental controls for teen users
The messaging app's optional features aim to give parents more oversight on their children's privacy settings and group activity.
WhatsApp is introducing new parental controls designed to offer more oversight for teenagers using the messaging platform. The optional features will allow parents to monitor aspects of their child's account, including who can add them to groups and control their privacy settings.
Parents will be notified when their child joins or leaves a group, and will be able to adjust privacy settings related to profile photos and Channel usage. The controls also extend to Meta AI, WhatsApp's built-in assistant, offering a default 13+ setting or a more restrictive "Limited Content" option.
WhatsApp has emphasized that while these controls offer visibility into account settings and group participation, parents will not have access to their teen's private messages or calls, which remain protected by end-to-end encryption. The company stated these tools are intended to foster open conversations between parents and teens about online safety.
Social media analyst Matt Navarra described the controls as "fairly convenient" for Meta, WhatsApp's parent company. He noted that the optional nature of the features could reduce Meta's reliance on stringent age verification methods by shifting some responsibility to parents and teenagers. "Meta is trying to show regulators we have a child safety system, we have parental controls and we're rolling it out across our platforms," Navarra commented, while questioning the extent to which families will utilize the new features.
The minimum age to use WhatsApp is 13 in the UK, though this age requirement varies in other countries. The new controls are designed to be easily set up using a PIN chosen by the parent, which teenagers would need to use if they wished to disable the features.
These developments come amid increasing pressure from governments and regulators on technology companies to enhance child protection measures on their platforms. In June, the UK government announced plans to ban under-16s from social media platforms, with restrictions anticipated to take effect in March 2027. The government plans to implement "highly effective age assurance" measures to verify user ages. WhatsApp is currently exempt from this ban, as it is categorized by the government as a messaging service.