Keeping children safe online starts with understanding the apps and devices they use. Phones, tablets and games consoles open up a world of learning, creativity and fun for children, but they also bring risks: strangers, inappropriate content, overspending and too much screen time. The good news is that almost every app and device children use now has built-in safety features. Most just need switching on.
This guide covers the apps children are most likely to use, the safety features each one offers and where to find them, plus device-level controls that protect everything at once.
Keeping children safe online: start with the basics
- Talk early and often. Controls help, but children who feel they can tell you when something online upsets them are the safest of all.
- Check age ratings. Most social media apps require users to be at least 13. Lying about age can switch off protections designed for younger users.
- Set up the device together. Use your own email address for your child’s account so you get alerts and can approve downloads.
- Keep devices in shared spaces, especially for younger children, and charge them outside bedrooms overnight.
- Turn off location sharing unless you’ve chosen to use it for family safety.
- Keep everything updated. Software updates fix security holes and often add new safety features.
Device-level parental controls
Setting up controls on the device itself is the most effective step you can take, because they apply to every app. You can usually manage them from your own phone.
| Device | Tool | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone & iPad | Apple Screen Time | App and screen time limits, content restrictions, Ask to Buy, communication limits. |
| Android phones & tablets | Google Family Link | Approve apps, set daily limits and bedtimes, filter Chrome and Google Search, see location. |
| Amazon Fire tablets | Amazon Parent Dashboard | Age filters, time limits, learn-first goals and activity reports. |
| Xbox | Xbox Family Settings | Screen time, spending limits, content ratings and who your child can talk to. |
| PlayStation | PlayStation Family Management | Age ratings, playtime, spending and communication settings. |
| Nintendo Switch | Nintendo Switch Parental Controls | Free app to limit play time, restrict games and block chat. |
Your broadband provider also offers free home network filters that block harmful websites on every device connected to your Wi-Fi. You can switch them on from your account with BT, Sky, Virgin Media, TalkTalk and most other providers. Internet Matters has step-by-step guides for each one ↗
Apps children use and their safety features
YouTube and YouTube Kids
Age: YouTube Kids for under-13s. YouTube is 13+, or younger with a parent-supervised account.
- YouTube Kids: a separate app with content levels for preschool, younger and older children. Parents can turn off search and approve individual videos and channels.
- Supervised experience: for children who have outgrown YouTube Kids, a parent-managed YouTube account with content settings to match their age.
- Restricted Mode filters out potentially mature videos, and you can see and pause watch history.
YouTube Kids ↗ · YouTube’s family settings ↗
TikTok
Age: 13+.
- Family Pairing: link your TikTok account to your teen’s to set daily screen time limits, filter content, and control who can message them and comment on their videos.
- Accounts for under-16s are private by default, and direct messaging is not available to under-16s.
- Restricted Mode limits content that may not be suitable for younger viewers.
TikTok Guardian’s Guide and Family Pairing ↗
Age: 13+.
- Teen Accounts: users under 18 are automatically placed in Teen Accounts, which are private by default, limit who can message them and filter sensitive content. Under-16s need a parent’s permission to loosen these settings.
- Supervision: see who your teen follows and messages (not the messages themselves), set daily time limits and schedule sleep mode.
- Hidden Words filters offensive comments and message requests.
Snapchat
Age: 13+.
- Family Centre: see who your teen is friends with and who they’ve messaged recently, without reading the messages. You can also report concerning accounts.
- Teens can only receive messages from friends or phone contacts by default.
- Snap Map location sharing is off by default. Check it stays on Ghost Mode, or limited to close family.
Snapchat parents’ site and Family Centre ↗
Age: 13+ in the UK.
- Group privacy: set “Who can add me to groups” to My Contacts, so strangers can’t add your child to group chats.
- Privacy settings: limit who can see your child’s profile photo, About, Last Seen and Online status.
- Silence unknown callers, and block and report contacts who send unwanted messages.
WhatsApp privacy and safety features ↗
Roblox
Age: rated by Roblox for all ages, with features matched to age.
- Age checks for chat: players must complete an age check before they can use chat, and are then only able to chat with people in a similar age group. Chat is off by default for under-9s unless a parent allows it.
- Parental controls: link your account to your child’s to manage chat, spending limits, screen time and the maturity level of games they can play.
- Experience ratings show what kind of content each game contains.
Roblox safety and parental controls ↗
Minecraft
Age: PEGI 7.
- Microsoft family accounts: control multiplayer, chat and friend requests, and approve purchases from the Marketplace.
- Play on private worlds or Realms with invited friends only, rather than public servers.
- Chat can be switched off completely in the game’s settings.
Fortnite
Age: PEGI 12.
- Epic Games parental controls: turn off voice and text chat, filter mature language, require approval for friend requests and set a PIN for purchases.
- Time limit reports show how long your child has played each week.
- Cabined accounts give younger players a safer experience until a parent gives consent.
Epic Games parental controls ↗
Discord
Age: 13+.
- Family Centre: see who your teen has added as friends and which servers they’ve joined, without reading their messages.
- Sensitive media filters blur explicit images, and teens can block messages from people who aren’t their friends.
- Discord is introducing age checks in the UK, which restrict age-sensitive content and settings for users who haven’t confirmed they’re adults.
What the law now says
Since July 2025, the UK’s Online Safety Act has required online platforms to protect children from harmful content, including using age checks to keep children away from pornography and content promoting self-harm. The government has also announced plans to stop under-16s from opening accounts on major social media platforms, expected to take effect in 2027. However, no system is perfect, so keeping children safe online still starts at home.
GOV.UK: new rules to protect children online ↗
Warning signs to look out for
- Becoming secretive about their phone or quickly switching screens when you walk in.
- New contacts, gifts, game currency or apps you don’t recognise.
- Seeming anxious, withdrawn or upset after being online.
- Using devices late at night or wanting to be online much more than usual.
If you’re worried, stay calm and keep talking, because open conversations are the most powerful part of keeping children safe online. Children are more likely to come to you again if they don’t fear losing their device.
Where to get help and report concerns
- CEOP: report concerns about online sexual abuse or grooming to the National Crime Agency. If a child is in immediate danger, call 999.
- Childline: free, confidential support for children and young people on 0800 1111, including help removing nude images shared online.
- NSPCC online safety: advice for parents, and a helpline on 0808 800 5000.
- Internet Matters: age-by-age advice and parental control guides for hundreds of apps and devices.
- UK Safer Internet Centre: guides for parents and a service to report harmful content.
Need a hand setting up a device?
If you’re giving a child a new or hand-me-down phone, tablet or laptop, make sure it’s been properly reset and is running the latest software first. If it needs a repair, a new battery or a fresh screen before it’s passed on, our mobile repair unit can help at your home across Preston, and every repair comes with our 6-month warranty.
Best budget tablets for children ↗ · Contact our team ↗
Apps update their features often. Check each app’s own safety pages for the latest settings. Preston Tech Repair isn’t affiliated with any of the companies mentioned.