What it is
Messenger Kids is designed so a grown-up approves who a child can talk to. There is no open search for strangers in the way a normal social app works. That is why it sits at the calm end of this scale.
The account still needs a parent attached to it. Children can feel pressure inside an approved group, and a contact who was fine last year may not be fine now.
What to look out for
- Contacts you do not remember approving.
- Group chats that have grown past the children you know.
- A child who is upset after a chat but will not say why.
- A move from this app to a normal messenger “because everyone else has one”.
Ways to stay safe
These steps are for Messenger Kids. The house rules still apply on every app.
- Stay logged in as the parent who approves contacts.
- Review the contact list every so often and remove anyone you cannot name.
- Agree that unkind messages get shown to you, not deleted in a panic.
- If they want a full Facebook or Instagram account, treat that as a new decision, not an automatic next step.
In the news
Published reports you can read yourself. A headline is the proof, not a set of instructions, and this page does not repeat graphic detail.
- Online grooming crimes against children increase by 89% in six years The NSPCC figures name Facebook and Messenger. Messenger Kids is the version where you approve contacts. The list is still the thing to check.
A way to start the conversation
You can say: "This app is for people I have said yes to. If someone is mean, or asks you to download a different app, you can tell me and they will not stay on the list."
Video
Parent briefing
A short video for this guide can be added by an editor. Until then, the written briefing above is the one to use.