Snapchat disables Find Friends for UK children — what changed
Snapchat has turned off the Find Friends feature by default for UK under-18s. Read what changed, why Ofcom intervened, and how Indian parents and teens can adjust privacy settings.
Snapchat has turned off its Find Friends friend-suggestion feature by default for UK users under 18, following pressure from Ofcom to reduce the risk of contact from strangers. UK teens can still enable it, but it now defaults to off; parents should check visibility and chat controls in Snapchat settings.
Key takeaways
- Find Friends (friend discovery) is now off by default for UK users under 18.
- Ofcom pushed the change to reduce grooming and unwanted contact risks.
- UK change is location-specific — not an automatic global change.
- Indian parents/teens should review Find Friends visibility, contact settings and Family Centre.
- You can manually turn Find Friends on, but safer defaults are recommended for minors.
In this article
What happened
On 6 November 2026 Ofcom said Snapchat began switching off its Find Friends friend-suggestion tool by default for users under 18 in the United Kingdom. The regulator framed the move as an important step to reduce the risk of children receiving contact from strangers and to limit opportunities for online grooming. Snapchat’s UK help pages and its safety notices confirm that Find Friends suggestions will be off by default for under-18 UK accounts.
Key details
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Date announced | 6 November 2026 (Ofcom update) |
| Feature affected | Find Friends (friend suggestions, formerly Quick Add) |
| Who is affected | Snapchat users under 18 in the UK — default set to off |
| Can it be re-enabled? | Yes — users can turn Find Friends back on from settings, but the default is off for UK minors. |
| Global rollout? | The change is a UK safety update; Snapchat already uses different protections for younger users in other countries. |
Also read: Google Play System Update — November 2026 changes explained
What changes for you
If you are a UK teenager, you will no longer appear in other people’s Find Friends suggestions unless you explicitly turn the feature on. That reduces the chance of being suggested to unknown adults or people outside your real-world network. For parents, it means a default extra layer of protection — fewer surprise friend requests and lower exposure to strangers.
For Indian parents and teens: the change itself applies to accounts in the UK. However, it highlights what to check in your own Snapchat settings now — because friend-discovery tools can behave differently by country and app version, and safer defaults are a good idea everywhere.
How to use or get it
Check or change Find Friends visibility (steps for Snapchat)
- Open Snapchat and tap your profile icon (top-left), then tap the gear icon to open Settings.
- Scroll to See Me in Find Friends or Find Friends visibility and toggle it off to stop appearing in suggestions.
- Also check: Who Can Contact Me and set to Friends rather than Everyone to block messages from unknown accounts.
- Enable Family Centre (if you are a parent) to review your teen’s friends and safety choices where available.
These options and wording may vary slightly by region or app version, so check the Snapchat help pages in the app if you don’t see the exact labels.
Other recommended privacy settings
- Set Who Can See My Story to Friends or a custom list.
- Turn off location sharing or enable Ghost Mode on Snap Map.
- Use two-factor authentication on the account to stop unauthorized access.
- Teach teens not to accept friend requests from unknown people, even if suggested.
What we still do not know
- Whether Snapchat will apply the same default-off rule for under-18s outside the UK at any point — Snapchat has not announced a global roll-out for this specific change.
- Exact technical details of any new age-verification measures Snapchat may roll out to enforce the updates in the UK by the end of 2026; Ofcom has asked firms for stronger steps but specific methods and timelines may change.
- How long the UK-only default will remain in place or whether the company will tweak which signals (age, location, contacts) determine visibility.
We rely on Snapchat’s UK support pages and Ofcom’s update for the confirmed facts. Where a wider rollout or new verification steps are discussed by regulators, those are commitments or plans rather than completed changes.
If your child uses Snapchat, check and set Find Friends visibility and message controls now — especially set contact permissions to "Friends" and hide location. UK parents will see safer defaults already; Indian parents should apply the same privacy settings locally because the UK change does not automatically apply in India.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Find Friends change automatic for kids in India?
No. The default-off change announced by Ofcom and implemented by Snapchat applies to users under 18 in the United Kingdom. Indian accounts keep region-specific defaults, so parents in India should manually review Find Friends and contact settings in the app.
Can a teen turn Find Friends back on after it is switched off?
Yes. Snapchat allows users to re-enable Find Friends from the app’s Settings. Ofcom and Snapchat recommend keeping it off for minors, but the control remains with the user in most cases.
What else should parents check in Snapchat to keep kids safer?
Set Who Can Contact Me to "Friends", restrict Story visibility, turn on Ghost Mode for Snap Map, enable two-factor authentication and consider Family Centre tools to monitor friend lists and reported concerns.
Why did Ofcom push Snapchat to change Find Friends?
Ofcom said the change reduces the risk of children being suggested to unknown adults and helps prevent grooming and unwanted contact. It followed Ofcom’s wider call for tech firms to improve child safety measures.
Does turning off Find Friends stop all unknown contact?
No. It reduces appearance in suggestion lists but doesn’t stop all contact attempts — unknown users can still try to message if other settings allow. Set "Who Can Contact Me" to Friends and block/report suspicious accounts.
