WhatsApp is giving parents new tools to oversee their teenagers' activity on the messaging app, including notifications when a teen joins or leaves a group and alerts when a group their child is in grows meaningfully in size. Parents can also control who sees their child's profile photo, who can add them to groups, and how they use Channels.
The move responds to pressure on tech companies to create safer experiences for young users. Meta, which owns WhatsApp, faces regulatory scrutiny over child safety. The controls are designed to help parents guide teenagers on responsible app use while keeping messages and calls protected by end-to-end encryption—parents cannot read their child's conversations or calls, according to WhatsApp's blog post.
Parents set up the controls using a PIN that teenagers need to enter if they want to disable them. The settings are optional and can be adjusted or switched off at any time. Teens can relax any restrictions with parental approval through the PIN system. WhatsApp noted that once parents and teens update the app, the parental control option becomes available in settings.
Social media analyst Matt Navarra called the optional nature an "obvious weakness," noting the feature's success depends on whether families actually use it. He said Meta is attempting to demonstrate to regulators that it has child safety systems in place, though the big question remains whether enough families will adopt the controls.