YouTube and other major social media platforms are strengthening parental controls as global concerns around children’s online safety continue to grow.
On Wednesday, the Google-owned platform announced new parental control features focused on limiting how much time children and teens spend watching YouTube Shorts, its short-form video product similar to TikTok and Instagram Reels.
With the update, parents can now set a daily timer that restricts how long a child’s linked account can watch Shorts. The feature is designed to curb excessive screen time and reduce endless scrolling. Parents can also choose to block Shorts entirely, either permanently or temporarily, such as during study periods when children are expected to focus on educational content.
In addition, YouTube is expanding its Bedtime and Take a Break reminders, which prompt users to stop watching videos. These reminders can be customized by parents for their children, and are also available for adults who want to manage their own viewing habits.
To make account management easier, YouTube says it will soon improve the in-app sign-up and switching experience. This update will allow parents and children to toggle between adult and kid accounts more easily, reducing the hassle of navigating multiple profiles, and preventing recommendation algorithms from being overtaken by children’s content.
Related: YouTube Launches AI Age Estimation to Protect Teen Viewers in the U.S
The new tools build on YouTube’s existing parental controls for teens, including supervision options for teens who create content on the platform. Similar safety features have become standard across major platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook.
Last year, YouTube also introduced age-estimation technology that predicts whether an account belongs to a teen, allowing the platform to automatically apply more age-appropriate settings and experiences.
