Online messaging platform WhatsApp recently announced that it’s launching new parent-managed accounts, which will allow parents or guardians to set up WhatsApp for younger users. The accounts will come with controls to limit WhatsApp usage to messaging and calling.
To use the feature, parents or guardians will need to put their child’s phone and their personal device side by side to link the accounts. Once enabled, said parent or guardian can then manage the accounts, including actions such as joining group chats, accepting message and call requests, in addition to managing privacy settings. For security, parental controls and settings are protected by a parent PIN on the managed device, and only parents can access and change privacy settings.
As with other WhatsApp messaging features, conversations are private with end-to-end encryption, and users will have the freedom to enter their own account name and profile photo. In other WhatsApp news, it’s been reported that the platform is working on a premium-tier subscription service for Android and iOS users, although there’s no launch date and pricing info at the moment.
