Snapchat Parental Control Feature in India
Snapchat is rolling out its initial set of parental control features for Indian users. Earlier in August, the popular social networking and messaging platform introduced an in-app parental control tool – Family Center in the US and some other markets. This helps parents to see their teen’s activities on the Snapchat account without disclosing the content of their chat. Teens will also be able to notify their parents when they report an account or a piece of content to the platform.
How Snapchat’s Parental Control Works
This tool mainly helps parents who have teenagers between the age of 13 to 18. By using the in-app tool, called Family Center, parents can invite their teens to join the Family Centre on Snapchat. When teens accept an invitation, parents can examine their children’s friends list and who they have messaged in the last 7 days. It also gives the ability to report safety concerns and potential abuse to Snap’s Trust and Safety team to review anonymously.
A few years ago, Snapchat introduced some additional measures, such as a minimum of 13 years to signup for Snapchat, requiring teens to have mutual friends before they can start chatting, and also it does not allow teenagers to have public profiles.
Also, Read – How To Set Parental Controls on iPhone and iPad
How to Enable Family Center Feature on Snapchat
To use this family center features parents and guardians must install the Snapchat app on their devices and opt-in invite process to link their accounts to those of their teenagers. Once the accounts are linked, the tool can be accessed with all its controls through the Snapchat app’s Profile Settings or by using the search feature for “family” or “family center” from the app’s Search functionality.
Snap said they are working with local nonprofit organizations FXB India Suraksha and CyberPeace Foundation to launch its Family Center feature in India. This parental control option is followed by the launch of its competitive social networking platforms including Meta’s Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
Jeremy Voss, Snap’s head of messaging products, had said that this feature makes the right path for strengthening the safety and well-being of young snap users, while still preserving autonomy and privacy.
Snapchat Stats in India
India is an important market for Snapchat inc, where it has more than 109 million monthly active users, according to Sensor Tower statistics. Recently, Snap introduced its premium service Snapchat+, in the South Asian market and also Snapchat for web features too.
“Snapchat is a central communications tool for so many young Indians, and as our community continues to grow, we know parents and caregivers want additional ways to help keep their teens safe. Our new in-app Family Center tool will help parents get more insight into who their teens are friends with on Snapchat, to help foster positive conversations about online safety while respecting the privacy and autonomy of teens,” said Uthara Ganesh, Public Policy head, of India, Snap, in her statement.
Snap is also launching bully prevention and mental health campaigns globally to celebrate World Mental Health Day and Bullying Prevention Month. The company in India said it is partnering with the nonprofit Sangath for these campaigns.