Group Chat Apps — Safety Overview
A comparative safety overview of the most popular group chat and messaging apps used by children, including WhatsApp, iMessage, Discord, and Telegram.
Official age
13+
We recommend
13+
Developer
Various
Risks
4
Overview
Group chat apps are the primary way children and teenagers communicate with friends outside of school. From WhatsApp and iMessage to Discord and Telegram, each platform has different features, risks, and safety controls. This guide provides a comparative overview to help parents understand the landscape and make informed decisions about which apps to allow.
How children use it
Children use group chat apps to stay in touch with school friends, organise social plans, share memes and videos, and participate in interest-based communities. Group chats can range from small friend groups to large channels with hundreds of members. Children may be added to groups without their consent and may feel pressured to remain in chats that become toxic or inappropriate.
Main risks
Recommended privacy settings
Who Can Add You to Groups
Location: Varies by app — typically found in Privacy settings
Set to: Contacts Only / Friends Only
Prevents strangers from adding your child to group chats. This is available on WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal.
Profile Visibility
Location: Varies by app — Privacy or Profile settings
Set to: Contacts Only
Restricts who can see your child's profile photo, status, and online/last-seen information.
Message Requests from Strangers
Location: Varies by app — typically in Privacy or Safety settings
Set to: Restricted or Off
On platforms like Discord and Instagram DMs, this prevents unknown users from sending direct messages to your child.
Parent actions
Review and configure privacy settings on every messaging app your child uses
Time: 15 minutes per app
Discuss ground rules for group chats, including when to leave and when to tell a parent
Time: 15 minutes
Check periodically which group chats your child is in and who the members are
Time: 10 minutes weekly