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Google Family Link: Parental Consent Now Mandatory for Teens
14 Jan
Summary
- Minors supervised by Google Family Link now need parental permission to opt-out.
- This change ensures protections remain until parents and teens agree.
- An advocate's viral post prompted Google to reverse its previous policy.
Google has announced a significant shift in its Family Link policy, effective globally this week. Minors supervised through the service will no longer be able to unilaterally opt-out of parental controls upon reaching the age of 13. Instead, parental approval will be required for teens to gain full control over their accounts.
This change, according to Google, is intended to ensure essential protections stay in place until both parents and teens are ready for the transition. The policy adjustment comes shortly after an online child safety advocate's post about the previous system gained viral traction. The advocate expressed concern over the company's former practices regarding youth safety online.
While welcoming the new policy, child safety advocates suggest that further reforms are necessary to adequately protect children in the digital space. The previous system allowed teens to remove parental supervision without explicit parental consent once they turned 13, a practice that drew criticism for potentially being predatory.
