Efforts to strengthen child safety on messaging platforms are gaining momentum, and WhatsApp appears to be moving closer to introducing built-in parental controls. New details from recent Android beta builds suggest the platform is developing a system that allows parents to create and manage restricted secondary accounts for children.
WhatsApp has been working on limited accounts for minors for some time. These accounts are designed to offer controlled access, reduced exposure to unknown contacts, and partial activity visibility for parents, while keeping chats and calls protected with end-to-end encryption. Fresh insights from WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.26.3.6, listed on the Google Play Store, shed more light on how the feature may function.
According to a post by a feature tracker, the upcoming “Primary Controls” feature will allow parents to set up secondary WhatsApp accounts for children who do not meet the platform’s minimum age requirement or need restricted usage for safety reasons. These secondary accounts will reportedly allow communication only with saved contacts.
The feature is still under development and is not available to beta testers yet. WhatsApp is expected to roll it out in a future update once testing and development are complete.
During the setup process, parents will need to link the child’s account to their own by scanning a QR code. They will also be required to create a 6-digit primary PIN. This PIN will be used to approve sensitive changes and block unauthorised modifications on the child’s account.
Shared screenshots indicate stricter feature limits than previously reported. Secondary accounts are expected to lose access to the Updates tab, including channels and broadcast-style content. WhatsApp’s Chat Lock feature will also be disabled, ensuring conversations cannot be hidden from device-level checks. These restrictions aim to reduce exposure to unknown content and prevent hidden activity.
Parents are expected to receive visibility into certain actions, such as when a new contact is added. However, they will not be able to read messages or view call details. End-to-end encryption will remain fully intact, according to the feature tracker.
The secondary accounts will stay linked to a parent’s account until they are manually removed or until the child reaches the age allowed under WhatsApp’s Terms of Service. At that stage, the account can be converted into a standard WhatsApp profile with full features after accepting updated terms.
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