Snapchat has begun disabling its "Find Friends" feature by default for child users in Britain, the country's media regulator Ofcom said on Friday (November 6), calling it an important step to reduce the risk of online grooming, Reuters reported.
The feature helps users find and add new contacts. Switching it off by default makes it harder for strangers to contact children on the image-sharing platform, Ofcom said. It considers Snapchat among the largest and most popular online services used by children in Britain.
A change Ofcom pushed for
Oliver Griffiths, director of Ofcom's Online Safety Group, said the change was "long overdue" and that the regulator would monitor its rollout this month. Snapchat had committed to the change in May. It has also told Ofcom that effective age checks for users under 18 should be in place by the end of the year.
A Snapchat spokesperson said the platform would "continue to strengthen our protections as risks evolve" and work with Ofcom, safety experts, families and young people.
Why it matters
- Ofcom said in May that 32% of children aged 8 to 12 in Britain used Snapchat, even though its minimum age is 13.
- A 2025 analysis of British police data by the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children found that 40% of recorded offences involving sexual communication with a child, where the platform was identified, took place on Snapchat.
- Ofcom has warned other tech companies that fail to tackle grooming risks that they could be fined up to 10% of their qualifying global revenue.
The change applies in Britain, where Ofcom enforces online safety rules; Reuters did not report whether Snapchat plans the same default elsewhere.