WhatsApp Launches Parent-Managed Accounts For Under-13 Users

WhatsApp introduced parent-supervised accounts for children under 13 on Wednesday, restricting young users to messaging and calling while giving guardians direct control over their contacts, groups, and privacy settings.

The Meta-owned platform said the accounts will carry no advertisements and will exclude features such as Meta AI, Channels, and Status. All conversations will remain end-to-end encrypted, meaning neither parents nor WhatsApp can access the content of chats or calls.

Setup requires both the parent's device and the pre-teen's device to be present simultaneously, with accounts linked via QR code. Parents can then protect the managed device with a six-digit PIN and configure activity alerts, receiving notifications by default when their child adds, blocks, or reports a contact.

Chat requests from unknown users are routed to a locked folder accessible only through the parent's PIN, and group invitation links are similarly restricted. Parents can review group details, including member count and administrator, before approving. Images from unrecognised senders are blurred by default.

Managed accounts also cannot enable disappearing messages in one-to-one chats. Pre-teens will see context cards identifying unknown senders by country and by any groups they share with the child.

As children age into eligibility for a standard account, WhatsApp will notify them of the transition; parents may delay the switch by up to 12 months.

The rollout begins in select geographies and will expand gradually over the coming months. Meta cited direct feedback from parents who had purchased phones for pre-teens and wanted a structured way to keep in touch via the platform, which counts more than three billion users worldwide.

Meta has broadened parental controls across its platforms in recent years. It introduced teen accounts for Facebook and Messenger in September 2025, a year after making under-16 teen accounts mandatory on Instagram. The announcement arrives as governments across Europe weigh restrictions on social-media access for minors, Denmark and Spain have announced planned bans for under-15s and under-16s respectively, Germany has commissioned a parliamentary study, and the United Kingdom has opened a public consultation on the issue.