Messages on Spotify: the new functionality that is discussed for the safety of teenagers

Integrated musical messaging

So far, Spotify has sent only pieces through external connections or by integration with other applications such as WhatsApp. From now on, the internal messaging facilitates direct sharing between the users of the platform. Teenagers can therefore discuss their playlist in real time, comment on a piece or exchange recommendations without leaving the application.

If this novelty strengthens Spotify’s social aspect, also brings the service closer to other networks in which messaging is already a standard, such as Instagram or Tiktok.

Concerns about the safety of young people

The addition of a messaging channel mechanically opens the door to the drifts: harassment, sending inappropriate messages or contacts with strangers. Spotify claims to have set guarantees, including the need to accept a request before receiving messages from a new user. But, as with any application of this type, Parents’ supervision remains essential.

Some computer security organizations recall that even if Spotify is not designed as a social network of meetings, it can become a field of approach for harmful people, in particular with young people.

Practical advice for parents

To support teenagers in the use of this new functionality, it is possible to implement several good practices:

• Activate parental control through the Spotify family account, which limits certain interactions.
• Check the confidentiality settings regularly, in order to check who can follow and contact your child.
• Promote the dialogue: talk to your teenagers have received messages, people who try to contact them and possible uncomfortable situations.
• Encourages critical thinking in the face of strangers: remember that personal or sensitive information never share, even in a musical application.

A new balance between pleasure and vigilance

For young people, the integration of a messaging makes Spotify more attractive and interactive. But for families, it requires to adapt the rules of use. The platform is not, rigorously, a social network like Facebook or Snapchat. However, by introducing direct exchanges, it approaches dangerously and requires an increase in monitoring.

The parents will therefore have to find a happy vehicle: let their children enjoy a space of exchanges on music, while guaranteeing that these conversations remain a fun and healthy extension of the listening experience and not a new source of risk.