UK Regulator Ofcom Pushes Snapchat to Disable Friend-Finding Feature for Children

The UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, has confirmed that Snapchat has begun disabling its “Find Friends” feature by default for child users in Britain to reduce the risk of online grooming and unwanted contact from strangers.

The move follows Ofcom’s May directive urging stronger child-safety measures across digital platforms. The regulator noted that Snapchat was used by 32% of children aged 8 to 12 in Britain, despite its minimum age requirement of 13.

Ofcom’s Online Safety Group Director Oliver Griffiths described the change as an important step, while stating that the regulator would monitor its implementation. Snapchat has also committed to introducing effective age checks for users under 18 by the end of 2026.

Ofcom reiterated that technology companies failing to address online grooming risks could face fines of up to 10% of their qualifying global revenue, reinforcing regulatory expectations around child protection and platform accountability.