WhatsApp introduces parental controls for teens

WhatsApp has introduced new parental controls that allow parents to manage how their teenagers use the messaging platform while keeping their private conversations protected.

The platform announced the controls in a blog post on Wednesday, saying parents and teens can set them up together to determine the WhatsApp experience that best suits their family.

Parents can choose privacy settings for their teens, including who can see their profile photo and who can add them to groups.

If a teenager wants to change some of the settings, parental approval through a parent-set PIN will be required.

Parents will also receive notifications when their teen joins or leaves a group, or when a group the teen belongs to grows significantly.

The new controls allow parents to manage how their teens use Channels, whose Status updates they can see and who can view their own Status updates.

WhatsApp also said parents can choose the Meta AI experience available to their teens, including the default 13+ setting or a stricter “Limited Content” option.

The company said the controls are optional and can be adjusted or turned off by parents at any time.

WhatsApp said the controls are designed to support conversations between parents and teens about responsible use of the platform while protecting personal messages and calls through end-to-end encryption.

“Even with controls turned on, your teen’s personal messages and calls stay private and protected by end-to-end encryption,” the company said.

It added that the new controls would be developed further based on feedback from families.(TheCable)