Children and teenagers today spend a lot of time on social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Telegram, and Snapchat.
Many kids start using messaging apps like WhatsApp at a young age to stay connected with friends and family.
While these apps make communication easy, they can also expose children to unknown contacts, spam messages, or inappropriate content.
To address these concerns, WhatsApp has introduced a new feature called Parent-Managed Accounts, designed specifically for children under the age of 13.
WhatsApp Launches Parent-Managed Accounts for Kids
Meta Platforms-owned messaging platform WhatsApp has announced the Parent-Managed Accounts feature to make the app safer for young users.
With this feature, parents or guardians will have greater control over how children use WhatsApp.
The goal is to create a safer environment where kids can communicate with trusted contacts while limiting exposure to unknown users.
Parents will be able to manage privacy settings, monitor activity, and control communication options.
According to WhatsApp, the feature will roll out gradually over the coming months.
How Parent-Managed Accounts Work
The Parent-Managed Account is designed for children under 13 years of age.
These accounts will be linked to a parent or guardian’s WhatsApp account, allowing them to supervise how their child uses the messaging platform.
The company developed the feature with input from families and safety experts to ensure that children can have a safe and controlled introduction to messaging apps.
Parents will also be able to guide their child’s communication by controlling who can contact them and how they interact on the platform.
Stronger Privacy and Limited Features
Accounts created under this system will come with stronger privacy settings and fewer features compared with regular WhatsApp accounts.
Children using these accounts will mainly be able to:
Send private messages
Make voice calls with approved contacts
However, several features will be restricted, including:
Status updates
Channels
Meta AI tools
Disappearing messages
If a child receives a message from an unknown contact, it will automatically go into a request folder.
Parents can access this folder using a secure PIN.
Parental Alerts and Safety Controls
Another key part of this feature is parental notifications.
Parents will receive alerts when their child:
Adds a new contact
Blocks someone
Reports a user
Even with these restrictions, WhatsApp says that chats will still remain end-to-end encrypted, ensuring private and secure communication between users.
How to Set Up a Parent-Managed WhatsApp Account
Setting up the new account is a simple process.
Here are the basic steps:
Parents need to start the registration process for a parent-managed account.
During setup, they will enter the child’s date of birth.
Both the parent’s phone and the child’s phone will be required to link the accounts.
Parents may need to verify their identity during the process.
In some cases, they may be asked to submit a selfie for age verification.
Once the setup is complete, parents can control privacy settings and contact permissions directly from their WhatsApp account.
This new feature aims to help parents introduce children to messaging apps in a safer and more controlled way, while still allowing them to stay connected with family and trusted friends.
