How to audit the privacy settings on your child’s favourite apps
To audit your child’s privacy settings, open their favourite apps together, locate the settings menu and switch their account to private so strangers cannot message them or view their posts. You should also turn off location sharing and restrict data collection to limit how much personal information the platform gathers. Sitting down for ten minutes to check these basic toggles gives you peace of mind while letting them enjoy their screen time safely.
Parents and teachers often feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of digital spaces young people inhabit. From video sharing platforms to creative gaming worlds, it can feel impossible to keep track. You do not need a computer science degree to help a child stay safe online. The recent Online Safety Act puts more responsibility on tech companies to protect young users in the UK, but we still need to take practical steps at home and in the classroom. Checking privacy settings is simply a modern equivalent of teaching a child how to cross the road safely. It is a quiet, practical routine that protects them from unwanted contact, including the growing wave of AI bots, deepfakes and automated scams.
Why a gentle, joint approach works best
Children often worry that an adult asking to look at their phone or tablet means they are in trouble. They fear you might delete their favourite game or ban them from chatting with their school friends. The very first step is to reassure them that this is not a punishment. You can explain that apps are built to collect as much information as possible, and you are simply working together as a team to lock the virtual doors. Keep your tone light and curious. Ask them to show you where the settings menu is, which makes them feel like the expert guiding you through their digital space.
If you are a teacher having a general conversation in the classroom, frame it around outsmarting the apps. Children love the idea of beating the system. Ask the class who knows how to make a profile private, and let them share their knowledge. When children understand that tech companies use their data to show them adverts or train artificial intelligence tools, they often become quite protective of their own privacy. This shared understanding makes the actual process of changing the settings much smoother.
When you sit down with your child, bring a snack and make it a comfortable experience. You might say something like, “I read an article about how apps track our location, and I want to make sure your games are not doing that. Can we check together?” This takes the focus away from their behaviour and places the responsibility squarely on the app. It builds trust, meaning they are much more likely to come to you if a stranger or an AI-generated profile tries to contact them later on.
Checking who can see, message and follow
The most critical setting to check on any platform is the visibility of the account. Open the app, whether it is TikTok, Snapchat or a gaming platform like Roblox, tap on your child’s profile picture and look for a gear icon in the top corner. Navigate to the privacy section. For nearly all children, the account should be set strictly to private. A private account means that only people your child approves can see their videos, read their thoughts or view their gaming achievements. It stops automated bots from scraping their pictures to create deepfakes and prevents scammers from gathering personal details to use in phishing attempts.
Next, look at the messaging permissions. Many popular apps allow anyone to send a direct message by default. You want to change this setting so that only established friends can send messages. In games where players build worlds or complete obstacles together, turn off the chat function entirely for younger children, or restrict it to friends only for older teenagers. If a child receives a message from someone they do not know, even if the profile picture looks like another child, it could easily be an AI-operated account designed to extract information. Restricting messages stops this problem at the source.
Finally, check the followers list. A child might have set their account to private recently but still have hundreds of unknown followers from months ago. Take five minutes to scroll through the list together. Ask them to identify the people they actually know from school, sports clubs or family gatherings. If they cannot name the person in real life, gently suggest removing them from the list. Explain that keeping a small, trusted circle of friends makes their online time much more enjoyable and significantly safer.
Managing data sharing and AI features
Modern apps do more than just connect people; they actively collect vast amounts of data. In the privacy or security menu, look for sections labelled data permissions, tracking or advertising. Switch off any toggles that allow the app to share data with third parties or use browsing history for targeted adverts. Young people do not need their digital footprints tracked across the internet. Minimising this data collection reduces the chances of their details ending up in databases used by scammers who create highly convincing, personalised phishing emails or messages.
Location sharing is another vital area to lock down. Many photo sharing and mapping apps broadcast a user’s exact location to all their contacts. Sometimes this happens on a visible map that updates in real time. Go into the location services on the device itself and ensure that apps only have access to location data when actively in use, or better yet, deny location access entirely for social platforms. A child does not need to broadcast their walk home from school or their weekend trip to the park.
You must also pay attention to new artificial intelligence features embedded directly into chat applications. Some platforms now feature AI companions pinned to the top of the chat list, encouraging children to talk to computer software as if it were a friend. While these bots are programmed to be friendly, they collect every piece of information a child types. Check the app settings to see if these AI features can be unpinned, muted or disabled completely. Talk to your child about how these bots are not real people and remind them never to share secrets, school names or addresses with a machine.
Frequently asked questions
Why should I make my child’s social media accounts private? Making an account private ensures that only approved friends can view their posts or gaming achievements. It also stops bots from scraping their pictures and prevents scammers from gathering personal details.
How should I talk to my child about checking their settings? You should reassure them that they are not in trouble and you are not going to delete their favourite apps. Keep your tone light and frame the process as teamwork to outsmart platforms that want to collect their data.
Who should be allowed to send direct messages to my child? You should change the settings so that only established friends can send them direct messages. For younger children, it is best to turn off the chat function entirely to prevent contact from strangers or automated bots.
What should we do if my child already has unknown followers? You should scroll through the followers list together and ask your child to identify people they know in real life. If they cannot name someone, gently suggest removing that follower to keep their circle small and safe.