Snap Inc. has announced updates to its Family Center, aiming to give parents and caregivers more detailed information about how their teens use Snapchat. The company introduced Family Center in 2022 as a tool for parents to help guide their teens toward safer and more positive online experiences, with default strict settings.
The latest update adds new features intended to make the platform easier for parents to navigate and offer deeper insights into teen activity on Snapchat.
Parents using Family Center can now view the average amount of time their teen spent on Snapchat each day over the past week. This data is further broken down by activity, such as chatting or snapping with friends, using the camera, exploring Snap Map, or watching content on Spotlight and Stories. According to Snap Inc., “This insight can help spark a dialogue about healthy screen time and online habits, giving parents concrete information to shape the discussion.”
In addition to seeing who their teen is friends with and tracking new friend additions from the past week, parents will now have access to information showing how their teen might know a new contact. Details include whether there are mutual friends, if the person is saved in the teen’s contact book, and which communities they belong to. Snap Inc. stated, “These trust signals make it easier for parents to understand new connections and have greater confidence that their teen is chatting with someone they know in real life. If a parent or guardian sees a new friend they aren’t familiar with, they have the information they need to start a productive conversation.”
To support families in using these tools effectively, Snap Inc. has produced a video explaining how to get started with Family Center. The company has also integrated its digital safety program called The Keys: A Guide to Digital Safety directly into Family Center. “The Keys is an interactive course designed to educate teens and families about online risks and how to help protect themselves. It’s meant to be a joint learning experience to strengthen communication between teens and caregivers about digital safety,” according to Snap Inc.
Family Center allows parents visibility into what teens are doing without exposing private conversation content. Alongside today’s updates, existing features let parents see their teen’s friends list and recent contacts; set content restrictions; disable access to My AI chatbot (and soon Perplexity search engine); share location within the family; and report accounts of concern on behalf of their teen.
