Melissa McKay, president of the Digital Childhood Institute, said on LinkedIn that Google sent her 12-year-old child an email notifying him that additional account features would be unlocked when he turns 13.
A child rights advocacy group in the United States has accused Google of undermining parental authority by allowing children to disable parental supervision on their Google accounts once they turn 13.
Melissa McKay, president of the Digital Childhood Institute, said on LinkedIn that Google sent her 12-year-old child an email notifying him that additional account features would be unlocked when he turns 13.
She shared screenshots of the message to support her claim.
According to Google’s frequently asked questions, children can turn off parental supervision tools once they reach the minimum age set in their country typically 13 in many places.
At that point, users can disable supervised experiences on YouTube and add payment methods to Google Pay. Parents also lose the ability to block apps, enable location sharing without the child’s consent, or restrict access to payment features.
“Google is asserting authority over a boundary that does not belong to them,” McKay wrote on LinkedIn. “It reframes parents as a temporary inconvenience to be outgrown and positions corporate platforms as the default replacement.”
Parents can supervise their children’s Google accounts through a service called Family Link until the child turns 13.
“In nearly ten years as an online safety advocate, this is among the most predatory corporate practices I have seen,” McKay added.
McKay first raised the issue in October, writing to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). In the letter, shared with Foreign Media, she argued that allowing minors to end parental oversight at such a critical stage of development even when parents wish to maintain those protections represents a failure of Google’s duty of care.
Google has faced ongoing scrutiny over its practices involving children and teenagers. A lawsuit filed in 2025 alleged that the company collected data from Chromebooks used by students in U.S. public schools.
In 2024, a separate report claimed Google sales representatives advised advertisers on how to target teens on YouTube.
In 2019, Google settled allegations brought by the New York State Attorney General over the collection of children’s personal data on YouTube, agreeing to pay $136 million in fines to the FTC and an additional $34 million to New York State.
More broadly, the online environment has become increasingly challenging for children and teenagers. A survey by the Pew Research Center last year found that 48 percent of teens said social media use had a negative effect on their mental health.
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