Is GroupMe Safe? A GroupMe App Review for Parents

Harmful Content 😲

Bullying

When kids gather in groups — whether online or in real life — bullying is always a possibility. In some ways, cyberbullying can be even more common because it’s harder to discern tone in online interactions. There are also myriad ways to bully on GroupMe — from aggressive and threatening messages to purposely kicking someone out of a chat, which can a dramatic (and traumatic) action. 

Adult content

GroupMe chats can grow as large as 5,000 people! And while your kid’s baseball team group chat probably won’t have more than 20 or so, there’s a chance that inappropriate content will get shared. This can take the form of images, videos, text, and links to outside content. GroupMe also has an embedded GIF generator that can turn up inappropriate images, as well. 

Secret browser

There’s a way to access the internet via GroupMe that isn’t entirely well known, but could be used by kids. From the settings in the app, you can tap through to get to the company’s Twitter account. It opens in a proprietary browser, so no record of the visit will register in Chrome or Safari. Twitter, as we have discovered, definitely has a porn problem, providing easy access to explicit content without even having to log in. 

Predation 🚨

Predation may be a threat if your child joins a large group with tons of users, especially if many are strangers. This threat can be even greater if someone else adds your child to a group without their permission. In these situations, group members may not be who they say they are.

Privacy 🔒

The only way to see a GroupMe group chat is if you’re a member, but this isn’t foolproof. Like with anything on the internet, you never know who is looking over someone’s one shoulder or even taking a screenshot. 

Parental Controls ✅

Unfortunately, GroupMe doesn’t have any parental controls. But there is good news! Bark can help you keep your kid safe by allowing you to:

• Block GroupMe entirely, if needed.
• Manage when your child can use GroupMe throughout the day.
• Monitor group messages, direct messages, and images and videos in both

So, should my kid download it?

For kids 14 and over, it’s a good option that enables friends, classmates, and teammates to keep in touch. There are a few dangers, but monitoring with Bark provides oversight into potential issues, and will alert you to situations that may need your attention.