To: Meta Platforms, Inc. (WhatsApp) and relevant digital safety regulators

We, concerned parents, guardians, and community members, are deeply alarmed by the increasing exposure of minors to inappropriate content through WhatsApp Channels. I was shocked going through my little brother's phone in the recent few weeks and I was amazed to see how Meta left this untackled according to my understanding as I could not restrict such channels from showing up.

In recent months, many parents have noticed that children’s WhatsApp accounts are being automatically shown or recommended Channels that contain adult, violent, or otherwise unsuitable material. These suggestions appear without consent or age verification, and there is no effective way to restrict or disable Channels for underage users.

WhatsApp has long been a tool for communication, learning, and family connection — but with the current Channel system, it is becoming unsafe for children. Parents are losing control over what their kids are exposed to, and WhatsApp’s lack of parental settings is putting millions of young users at risk.

We are calling on WhatsApp and Meta to:
Introduce Parental Control Features — Allow parents to disable or manage Channel visibility on child accounts.
Implement Age Verification — Ensure users below 16 are not shown adult or suggestive Channels.
Create a “Child-Safe” WhatsApp Mode — A simplified version of WhatsApp with zero Channel exposure.
Be Transparent — Clearly communicate what data and algorithms are used to suggest Channels.

Or totally remove these channels if they are failing to deal with them.

As a global community, we demand that Meta take immediate responsibility for protecting young users from digital harm.
Children deserve a safe communication environment, not one filled with adult or harmful media they did not choose to see. Their (children) curiosity will lead them into opening these channels and before you know it, they are already taken the wrong path which just popped up on a device that I bought for his or her growth through comms and networking.

We ask regulators such as POTRAZ in Zimbabwe, and similar authorities worldwide, to hold WhatsApp accountable for ensuring compliance with child protection and data safety standards.

Together, we can make WhatsApp safer for our children.

📣 Sign and share this petition to demand that WhatsApp gives parents control — and gives children safety.