Google has come under criticism after contacting children ahead of their 13th birthdays with information on how to disable parental controls.

 

 

The tech giant emailed children directly, informing them that they could soon “graduate” from supervision and choose to turn off certain safety settings. The messages were sent as part of Google’s process ahead of a child turning 13, the age at which parental controls become optional on accounts.

 

 

The issue was highlighted by Melissa McKay, president of the Digital Childhood Institute, who said Google had emailed her 12-year-old son explaining how he could remove parental supervision.

 

 

Posting on LinkedIn, McKay wrote: “A trillion-dollar corporation is directly contacting every child to tell them they are old enough to ‘graduate’ from parental supervision. The email explains how a child can remove those controls themselves, without parental consent or involvement.”

 

 

“Google is asserting authority over a boundary that does not belong to them. It reframes parents as a temporary inconvenience to be outgrown and positions corporate platforms as the default replacement. Call it what it is. Grooming for engagement. Grooming for data. Grooming minors for profit,” she said.

 

 

McKay also shared a screenshot of the email, which stated: “Your birthday’s coming up. That means when you turn 13, you can choose to update your account to get more access to Google apps and services.”

 

 

Google allows children to have accounts from birth if they are created and managed by a parent or guardian. These accounts enable parents to view search history, block adult content, manage app downloads and control screen time on Android devices.

 

 

In the period leading up to a child’s 13th birthday, Google emails both the child and parent to inform them that the child will soon be able to disable these controls.

 

 

The practice prompted backlash online, with hundreds of comments responding to McKay’s post. Following the criticism, Google said it would update its settings to require parental approval before supervised accounts can be changed.

 

 

“We’re making a planned update to require formal parental approval for teens to leave a supervised account. This builds on our existing practice of emailing both the parent and child before the change to facilitate family conversations about the account transition,” a Google spokesperson said.

 

 

Google said children over 13 will still be able to create new accounts without parental controls as it is the minimum age at which individuals can consent to data processing in the United Kingdom and the United States, while the age is higher in most other countries, including France and Germany.