1. Is Discord safe for my teens to use?
There are a few things that make Discord a great and safe place for teens:
- Users are in control of their experience on Discord. Conversations on Discord are driven by the people you choose and the topics you choose to talk about. Each user gets to choose who can message them, who can send them a friend request, and what kind of content they can receive.
- Privacy is incredibly important to us. We do not ask for a real name when a user signs up, and we do not sell our user data. We do not monitor every server or every conversation.
- Private, invite-only groups. Most Discord servers are small, private, invite-only groups where your teen can spend time with their friends or schoolmates.
To help your teen use Discord safely, it’s important to understand how Discord works and how you can best control your teen’s experience on it. We have listed a number of tips to do so here.
Just like with every other online service, the best way to ensure your teen stays safe online is to have clear guidelines on what they should and shouldn’t be looking at or posting online, and make sure that you keep clear lines of communication with them.
2. What is the minimum age to be on Discord? How do you ensure teens under 13 can’t create an account?
Discord's Terms of Service require people to be over a minimum age to access our app or website. The minimum age to access Discord is 13, unless local legislation mandates an older age.
To ensure that users satisfy that minimum age requirement, users are asked to confirm their date of birth upon creating an account. Learn more about how we use this age information here. If a user is reported as being under 13, we delete their account unless they can verify that they are at least 13 years old using an official ID document.
3. What personal information does Discord collect about my teen? Do you sell it?
Discord does not ask for a real name when a user signs up, and we do not sell user data. To learn more about what information we collect and how we use this information, please see our Privacy Policy.
4. Can my teen be exposed to inappropriate content on Discord?
Like on every internet platform, there is age-restricted content on Discord. Each user chooses which servers they want to join and who they want to interact with.
In servers, age-restricted content must be posted in a channel marked as age-restricted, which cannot be accessed by users under 18. For Direct Messages, we recommend that every user under 18 activates the explicit media content filter by selecting "Keep Me Safe" under the "Safe Direct Messaging" heading in the Privacy & Safety section of their User Settings. When a user chooses the "Keep Me Safe" setting, images and videos in all direct messages are scanned by Discord and explicit media content is blocked.
We believe that the best way to make sure that your teenagers are only accessing content that they should is to set clear guidelines on what they should and shouldn’t be looking at or posting online, and make sure that you keep clear lines of communication with them.
5. Can my teen interact with people they don’t know on Discord?
Unlike other platforms where someone might be able to message you as soon as you sign up for an account (before you have added any friends or joined any servers), this isn’t the case on Discord. In order for another user to send a direct message (DM)to your teen, your teen must either (1)accept the other user as a friend or (2) decide to join a server that the other user is a member of.
Each user has control over the following:
- Who can DM them and who can send them a friend request
- Which servers they want to join and be a part of
- Who can join the servers that they create
- Whether they want their direct messages to be scanned for explicit media content automatically
Users should only accept friend requests from users that they know and trust. If your teen isn’t sure, there’s no harm in rejecting the friend request. They can always add that user later if it’s a mistake.
If your teen is ever uncomfortable interacting with someone on Discord, they can always block that specific user. Blocking a user removes them from your teen's Friends List, prevents them from messaging your teen directly, and hides their messages in any shared servers.
6. Are there parental controls on Discord I can use to control my teen's account?
We have detailed all the controls you have to help make your teen’s account safer here. We recommend going through these settings together with your teen and having an open conversation about why you are choosing certain settings.
iOS and Android operating systems offer parental controls that can help you manage your teen's phone usage, including Discord, if needed. Apple and Microsoft offer similar controls for computers.
7. How can I monitor what my teen is doing on Discord?
Privacy is incredibly important to us, including your teen’s privacy. We can’t share their login information with you, but we encourage you to discuss how to use Discord safely directly with your teen.
8. What are Student Hubs?
Discord Hubs for Students allow students to verify their Discord account with their official student email, and unlock access to an exclusive hub for students at their school. Within the hub, they can connect with other verified students, discover servers for study groups or classes, and share their own servers for fellow students to join. Hubs are not affiliated with or managed by a school or school staff. Servers in a Hub are student-run but may include non-students.
For more information on Student Hubs, please check out our Student Hubs FAQs.
9. What safety measures are in place for the students participating in Student Hubs?
Only those with a school-assigned email address can access a school’s specific hub. Click here to dive into our Student Hubs guidelines. All servers and users in the hub must also comply with our Community Guidelines, Terms of Service, and Privacy Policy. We also have all of our existing moderator controls for servers, such as setting specific roles and access to #channels in a server, blocking, banning, mod bots, and more. Students can also submit a report from within their hub to bring attention to any inappropriate behavior.
Tags:
Parents and Teens
