Lock down a teen's social accounts

Review privacy, discovery, location, sign-in security and contacts together. Menus and options vary by app version and account age.

Review existing accounts together, explaining each change and how your child can ask for help. Privacy settings can reduce exposure; they cannot guarantee that contact or content is safe.

Step-by-step

1 · Instagram

Under-18 accounts should already be Teen Accounts (private by default, restricted DMs, sensitive-content limits). Verify rather than assume — and check the age on the account is the real one.

Official video · Instagram
Instagram Teen Accounts
Publisher’s overview video. Use the written guidance and current official support links for settings; the video may show older menus.
Open official source

1Private: profile → three lines (top right) → Settings and privacy → Account privacy → 'Private account' ON.
2Discovery: Settings → 'Suggested content' / 'Similar account suggestions' → turn OFF suggesting their account to others. Also Settings → Account Centre → Your information → turn off contact syncing.
3Messages: Settings → Messages and story replies → 'Others on Instagram' = Don't receive requests; Story replies = People you follow.
4Tags and mentions: Settings → Tags and mentions → set both to 'People you follow'. Turn on manual approval for tags.
5Location: never add a location to a post or Reel; remove any place, school or town from the bio.
62FA: Account Centre → Password and security → Two-factor authentication → Authentication app.
7Supervision: Account Centre → Supervision → invite your account. It shows time spent, new followers and reported accounts — it does not show message content.

2 · TikTok

13–15 accounts are private by default with DMs off. 16–17 accounts are not fully locked, so check them properly.

Official video · TikTok
Teen safety and privacy defaults
Publisher’s overview video. Use the written guidance and current official support links for settings; the video may show older menus.
Open official source

1Private: profile → three lines → Settings and privacy → Privacy → 'Private account' ON.
2In Privacy, review Suggest your account to others and disable unwanted discovery options; the options vary by account.
3Sync: Privacy → 'Sync contacts and Facebook friends' → off, and tap 'Remove previously synced contacts'.
4Messaging: Privacy → Direct messages → 'No one' (or Friends only for older teens).
5Comments, duets, stitches, downloads: Privacy → set each to Friends or No one.
6Location: never mention school or town in a bio; TikTok also infers location from the device — turn location permission off in the phone's app settings.
72FA: Settings → Security and permissions → 2-step verification → authenticator app.
8Family Pairing: Settings → Family Pairing → link your phone to set screen time, restricted mode, DM limits and search restrictions that the teen cannot undo.

3 · Snapchat

Review contact discovery, location sharing and public content such as Spotlight and Stories.

Official video · Snapchat
Understand your teen's Snapchat experience
Publisher’s overview video. Use the written guidance and current official support links for settings; the video may show older menus.
Open official source

1Contact me: profile → gear icon → Privacy Controls → 'Contact Me' → 'My Friends'.
2Story: Privacy Controls → 'View My Story' → 'My Friends' or a custom list.
3Snap Map: open the Map → gear icon → 'Ghost Mode' ON. Check it is not set to expire in 3 or 24 hours.
4Review Find Friends or Quick Add discovery settings and reduce unwanted suggestions where offered.
5Contact sync: Settings → 'Mobile Number' / 'Contacts' → turn off syncing and delete previously synced contacts.
62FA: Settings → Two-Factor Authentication → authenticator app.
7Family Centre: Settings → Family Centre → invite your account. You see who they message — not what is said.
8Review friends together. Discuss anyone whose identity is uncertain or whose behaviour makes your child uncomfortable.

4 · Discord

Discord risk lives in servers and DMs from server members, not in a profile. UK accounts now get age-appropriate defaults, but server settings are still per-server.

Official video · Discord
The Discord Family Center
Publisher’s overview video. Use the written guidance and current official support links for settings; the video may show older menus.
Open official source

1Review Sensitive Content Filters for images and direct-message privacy. Image filtering does not assess every text message.
2Friend requests: Privacy & Safety → Who can add you as a friend → uncheck 'Everyone'; leave 'Friends of Friends' and 'Server members' off too if you can.
3Per-server: right-click each server → Privacy Settings → turn off direct messages from that server's members.
4Servers: open the server list together and ask what each one is. Leave any large public server they cannot explain.
52FA: User Settings → My Account → Enable Two-Factor Auth (authenticator app).
6Family Centre: User Settings → Family Centre → link your account for a weekly email of who they messaged and which servers they joined — content is not shown.

5 · Finish on every account

Official video · Instagram
Recheck teen protections
Publisher’s overview video. Use the written guidance and current official support links for settings; the video may show older menus.
Open official source

1Check the public profile together. A signed-out view is only one view; it cannot reveal every audience or recommendation.
2Check the profile photo, bio and pinned posts for school uniform, school name, street or house number.
3Check the account birthday. An incorrect age can affect protections; follow the platform’s correction process.
4Save the reporting routes: in-app reporting; CEOP for concerns about online sexual abuse or exploitation of a child; Report Remove for eligible sexual images of under-18s. Removal cannot be guaranteed. Never download, copy or forward sexual images to make a report.
5Put a date in the calendar to redo this in three months. Apps change defaults; accounts drift.

What you can control

Privacy

Limit audiences and review contacts.

Discovery

Reduce suggestions and contact syncing where supported.

Messages

Review who can contact the account and available filters.

Location

Review app sharing, device permissions and revealing posts.

Two-factor authentication

Adds protection to sign-in; keep recovery codes safe.

Family controls

Review each platform’s supported linking and privacy limits.

Official tutorials & videos

Everything below links directly to Apple, Google, Meta, TikTok, Snap or Discord — no third-party blogs.

Things to keep in mind

Family linking offers different visibility on each platform; do not assume it shows private message content.
Content controls and filters may influence recommendations but cannot guarantee every item.
Recheck after significant app updates and when your child reports a problem.
Use the official account-age correction process if the birthday is wrong.