Snapchat, Instagram, Myspace, AIM… since the internet age began, teens and pre-teens have found ways to connect online and meet others. After all, these are the years when many of us become more socially aware, more curious about others, and start friendships that can last a lifetime. This is often encouraged by parents as research has shown that both real life and internet friendships can be beneficial for children.
Wizz is the latest app to connect young people online -and it’s been cooking up controversy among parents worldwide.
The Wizz app, which has been dubbed ‘Teen Tinder’ for its similarities to adult dating apps, has recently been removed from both the App Store and Google Play Store over serious safety concerns and the alleged use of the app in sextortion scams. Although this will hinder new users from downloading the app, what about the approximately 20 million youngsters using Wizz today?
In this safety guide, we’ll address the risks your child could expose themselves to by using the Wizz app and, if you still want to allow older teens to use it, we recommend ways that you can make the app safer.
What is the Wizz App?
Owned by Voodoo, a French mobile video game developer, Wizz is marketed as a ‘social discovery app’ that allows users as young as 13 to join and connect with users of a similar age.
After first launching in the UK in October 2022, the Wizz app quickly went viral through TikTok re-shares and 20 million views. Soon after, Wizz became available in the US, Canada, and Australia, and has the goal of reaching 23 more countries.
Wizz claims to be the ‘ultimate online platform for random chats with people from all over the world’ and the fun, according to the app’s tagline, comes from the unexpected. This description might already be setting off alarm bells, yet it’s Wizz’s dating app style features that have drawn concern among parents worldwide.
Like with adult dating apps Tinder and Bumble, users of Wizz can look at a stranger’s profile and choose to swipe left to dismiss, or right to start a conversation with them.
Is Wizz a dating app?
But, with features that mirror the most successful dating apps, it’s only inevitable that people would use Wizz in the same way.
After looking at a few profiles, you’re sure to come across sentences such as ‘straight hmu’ (I am straight/heterosexual, hit me up), sexually suggestive emojis, and hints to slide into DMs on Instagram or Snapchat.
Is the Wizz App dangerous for kids?
Wizz is advertised as a ‘safe space’ for young users to meet others of a similar age – and it tries to support this by having several measures in place. Wizz users must be 13 and over and they are required to take a selfie with Yoti, an app that uses AI to verify age via a selfie. If Yoti cannot verify successfully, a Wizz team member reviews the photo to confirm the user’s age. If it still can’t be determined, the individual cannot use the app.
Unfortunately, these measures aren’t foolproof and parents have complained about a few flaws that can expose young Wizz users to online dangers that include…
- Exposure to bad language and inappropriate content
- Exposure to conversations involving drugs and sex
- Phishing and scams
- Grooming and sexual predation
- Blackmail and sextortion
Age verification can be falsified
Users of Wizz must verify their age by providing their birthdate and taking a selfie with Yoti, where an algorithm instantly estimates their age based on their face. It could be possible to input a fake birthdate and ask someone older (or younger) to take a selfie for them.
Allows children to mingle with adults
Even when not falsified, the age verification system does not work reliably. Minors and adults frequently appear in the same space and can be connected if they accept each others’ friend requests.
No parental controls
Yes, despite the young user base, the Wizz App has no built-in parental controls. Fortunately, an all-in-one, parental control app like Qustodio can bridge this gap by blocking or limiting your child’s access to the Wizz App, and setting time limits on usage.
How the Wizz App can be used safely
After learning more about the Wizz App and its potential perils, many parents would be rightfully put off by the idea of their child using it.
While we don’t recommend the app for younger teens, we believe older teens could be trusted to use Wizz responsibly. Here are some safety recommendations if you choose to allow your teenager to use the app.
1. 16+ only
Wizz allows users as young as 13 to use the app, but in our opinion, this is too young to be exposed to the mature content commonly seen on the app.
Based on this and parents’ reviews, we recommend that the app should not be used by teens under 16
2. Manage privacy settings and ‘Find new friends’ preferences
Review what your teen shares with the app and make sure to remove specific details about their location. You can also turn off their visibility which disables people from reaching out to them.
While you cannot control specific interactions, you can restrict who they have them with by managing their ‘Find new friends’ preferences and choosing gender, age, and location. You can also elect to only view verified users, to reduce the number of fake profiles or bots your teen may connect with.
3. Block and report
If someone is bothering or behaving inappropriately toward your child, they can be blocked and/or reported by clicking the three dots on their profile. Make sure your teen knows how to do this too.
4. Check-in with your child
To encourage a healthy, life-long relationship with technology, we always recommend having open discussions with your children about their online habits. So, talk with your teen about the people they are connecting with on Wizz and make sure they’re aware of the risks involved when chatting with strangers.
A digital family agreement can help you create a safe space to talk about technology together.
5. Use parental controls
Wizz doesn’t have integrated parental controls – but concerned families can use a parental control app like Qustodio to help safeguard their children from the potential risks of using the app.
Qustodio allows parents to:
- Block the Wizz App from being opened
- Receive an alert when your child first uses the app
- Set time limits for its usage
- Pause the internet to immediately prevent access to the app
Wizz App: Qustodio’s final recommendation
For these reasons, we cannot recommend that younger teens use the Wizz App.
If you still wish to allow your older teens (16+) to use Wizz, make sure that they’re well aware of the risks involved and that the safety recommendations we’ve mentioned are adhered to.
