Discord is popular with young users, which raises some concerns for parents about safety and how it’s used. While the platform is meant for users 13 and up, younger kids often find their way onto it.
Discord does offer some safety features, but there aren’t strong parental controls specifically for kids under 13. A big draw for kids is that their friends use Discord, plus it’s a hub for connecting around games and hobbies. With features like text, voice, video, and social groups, it’s easy to see the appeal for staying connected.
If your child is interested in Discord, it’s important to understand how it works and set up boundaries. Things like discord server moderation and privacy settings can help create a safer experience if you decide to allow them to use the platform.
Let’s unpack what Discord is, how it works, the risks it poses for kids, and why an alternative like JusTalk Kids might be the better choice.
What is Discord?
At its core, Discord is a social platform where users can join chat rooms, called servers, based on shared interests—whether it’s gaming, art, or hobbies. Users on Discord can send text messages, join voice chats, or even share videos. The freedom to create and join communities has made Discord a huge hit, especially with teens and young adults.
Key Discord Features:
- Text messaging channels
- Voice and video chat
- File and media sharing
- Server creation and management
- Integration with games and other applications
- Private messaging between users
In recent years, Discord has grown beyond gaming to become popular among educational groups, hobbyist communities, and even professional organizations.
How Discord Works?
Discord functions as a community hub, where users can interact in public or private servers. Each server can have channels dedicated to specific topics, and these channels can include text, audio, or video chat.
While this setup is great for fostering connections, it also means users can encounter strangers in public servers—or even unregulated private ones. Content shared can range from entertaining to harmful without strict moderation.
- Direct Messages: Private conversations between individuals
- Server Roles: Custom permissions that control what users can do
- Emojis and Reactions: Visual expressions to respond to messages
- File Sharing: Easy exchange of images, documents, and links
Users can join servers via invitation links shared by friends or community organizers. These invitations can be set to expire after a certain time or number of uses for security.
Discord uses a simple interface with a sidebar showing all joined servers and available channels. This design makes navigation intuitive even for younger users who are just learning the platform.
The platform is accessible through desktop applications, web browsers, or mobile apps. This flexibility allows kids to stay connected across different devices while parents monitor their activity.
Voice channels create spaces where users can talk in real-time without needing to make individual calls. This feature is particularly popular for gaming or group study sessions.
Is Discord Safe for Kids?
Discord is designed for users 13 years and older, but its lack of proper age verification often allows younger children to join without barriers. This loophole, combined with minimal parental controls, makes it a risky platform for kids. While Discord offers some tools like blocking direct messages and creating private servers, these features are not enough to address safety concerns effectively.
Here’s why Discord isn’t kid-friendly:
- Minimal Age Verification: Children can easily bypass the 13+ age restriction since there’s no strict system to verify a user’s age. This means many young children are unsupervised on the platform.
- Limited Parental Controls: Unlike other kid-focused apps, Discord doesn’t provide robust tools for parents to monitor their child’s activity, control screen time, or filter content.
- Unregulated Communication: Discord allows users to join both public and private servers, participate in group and private chats, and access various communities. This level of openness increases the likelihood of kids encountering inappropriate behavior or content.
The platform’s design makes it hard for parents to keep track of what their children are doing, especially in direct messages or voice chat environments. This lack of supervision creates significant risks for younger users.
Potential Risks For Kids On Discord
For many parents, Discord seems like a harmless way for kids to chat with peers. However, the platform’s openness introduces serious risks that parents should understand.
Exposure to Inappropriate Content
Discord’s public servers are often poorly moderated, which means kids can stumble across channels with explicit language, violence, or adult themes. Even in private servers, community standards vary widely, making it easy for inappropriate or harmful content to slip through.
Stranger Interactions
Anyone with a Discord account can join public servers or send friend requests. Predators sometimes exploit this feature to target children through direct messages or by posing as other users in shared communities.
Cyberbullying Risks
Discord’s unmoderated voice and text channels make it easy for bullying and harassment to occur, especially in larger servers. Kids are vulnerable to criticism or trolling without safeguards in place.
Privacy Concerns
Children may accidentally share sensitive personal information while chatting on Discord, making them easy targets for scams or phishing attacks. End-to-end encrypted chats make it difficult for parents to monitor these interactions.
Alternatives To Discord For Younger Kids
So, if Discord isn’t the best for kids, what’s the alternative? Enter JusTalk Kids, a safe and child-friendly app designed with younger users in mind. Here’s why it’s a better option:
- Total Security and Privacy
JusTalk Kids ensures your child won’t receive calls, messages, or friend requests from strangers. The app encrypts all communications to keep personal information private and secure, giving parents peace of mind.
- Engaging Features for Kids
To make communication fun, JusTalk Kids offers kid-appropriate doodles, stickers, and games that spark creativity and laughter. Kids can personalize their experience by choosing themes and icons that reflect their style.
- Safe Family Connections
JusTalk Kids allows children to safely message and video call with family, friends, and approved adults through Wi-Fi. Parents and grandparents can use the JusTalk Family/JusTalk app to stay connected, making it a family-friendly platform.
- Blocks Strangers and Manages Content
Only approved friends can connect, and parental controls make it easy to manage who your child interacts with. Parents can monitor calls, chat records, and even get alerts when sensitive content is sent or received.
- Fun and Educational Extras
Beyond safe communication, JusTalk Kids encourages creativity and learning. Kids can share drawings, music, or texts, post special moments, and even explore educational videos on KidsTube, a dedicated feature full of fun, enriching content.
- High-Quality Calls and Chats
From group chats to 1-on-1 video calls, JusTalk Kids offers high-definition audio and interactive features like real-time games and collaborative doodling during calls. It’s not just safe—it’s fun and engaging.
Final Thoughts
While Discord offers exciting features for older teens and adults, it’s a risky space for younger kids. The lack of robust parental controls, exposure to inappropriate content, and potential risks make it a poor choice for children.
Instead, apps like JusTalk Kids provide a safe and engaging alternative, keeping communication fun but controlled. When it comes to your child’s safety, settling for “okay” isn’t enough—explore kid-focused options that truly prioritize their well-being. Download Now!