Online issues and worries: group chats

Lots of social media, gaming and messaging apps allow group chats.

What are the benefits of being in a group chat?

Group chats allow you to keep up to date with what your family and friends are doing, all over the world. You can message lots of people at once and see each other’s replies as part of the conversation. You can usually see who is online and available to chat (depending on the settings of your contacts). Group chats are a great way to make plans, share ideas and content, and stay connected.

Are group chats private?

Group chats are often end-to-end encrypted, which means that no one else can read or listen to your messages. However, anything sent privately can always be shared by forwarding messages, saving images or taking screenshots. No message is ever guaranteed to be 100% private.

It's therefore important to think carefully about what you say, do and share in a group chat as it could still impact your digital footprint and online reputation. You should also consider the amount of personal information that you choose to share in a chat, especially if the group is large and there are people whom you do not know very well.

Can I stop someone adding me to a group chat?

This depends on the app that you are using. Some apps provide settings that let you control whether you are added to a chat or not. If these are activated, you may be sent a link to join a chat, rather than being automatically added.

Other apps will allow the friends on your account to create group chats and add you automatically, but you are then able to leave if you do not want to stay.

Sometimes you might be added to a group chat by people that are not in your contacts. If this happens, you are usually able to report the chat and block the person who created the group, without having to read the content.

It is also possible to prevent people from adding you to chats, based on who can see your profile and mobile number. The best thing to do is check the settings within each service to see what privacy controls are available to you.

What should I do if there are people I don’t know in the group?

You may find yourself being added to a number of groups, often with people who are not your close friends, especially if you have started at a new school or club for example.

Group chats can be a fun way to get to know new people. However, if you are at all worried about the behaviour of other members of the group, or feel like the group is not a safe place to be, then it’s a good idea to remove yourself and talk to a trusted adult if something specific has happened.

There are no limits to the number of group chats that you can be in, so by creating your own with your close friends you can be in control of who is there. 

I’m getting too many notifications, what can I do?

You may be part of groups where new content is posted every few minutes by your friends, and it can often feel overwhelming trying to keep up.

If notifications are too much of a distraction, are interrupting your schoolwork or even your sleep, or you’re feeling pressure to respond quickly, then look in the app/chat settings for options to turn notifications off or mute the group.

That way you can still see what is being posted on your own terms without having to leave.

I’ve seen something on a chat that upset me, what should I do?

As with all forms of social media, it isn’t possible to control what other people choose to share online. This applies to group chats too, and unfortunately there may be times where you see content that makes you feel upset or confused, including:

• inappropriate or offensive content
• online bullying
• extreme content
• fake news and misinformation

While sharing upsetting content is not always done deliberately, if you see or experience anything inappropriate within a group chat, it’s important to seek advice from an adult so that you can talk about it together. A simple way of recording what has happened is by taking screenshots (before content is deleted), as these may be needed for reporting. Always remember, you can leave a group chat at any time.

Can I block and report people on group chats?

Other users can usually be reported and also blocked within a group chat app or service. To do so, simply click their name to bring up their profile or information and choose either ‘Block contact,’ or ‘Report contact.’ It’s useful to take some time exploring the settings available on each service that you use, as reporting options may not always be labelled in the same way.