What UK parents need to know about diaspora messaging apps - LINE, KakaoTalk, and WeChat - including age-verification gaps, in-app browser exposure, cross-border data, and payments.
อายุทางการ
13+
เราแนะนำ
13+
นักพัฒนา
LY Corporation, Kakao Corp., Tencent
ความเสี่ยง
4
LINE, KakaoTalk, and WeChat are the dominant messaging apps of Japan, South Korea, and China respectively. In the UK they are mostly used by children of Japanese, Korean, and Chinese heritage to stay in touch with grandparents, cousins, and family friends overseas, and by international students. All three are 'super-apps' that combine messaging, voice and video calling, a social feed, an in-app browser, mini-programs and games, and an integrated payments wallet. Age verification on sign-up is light - a phone number and date of birth - and there is no dedicated under-13 experience. The in-app browser means a link sent in a chat opens inside the app, where UK-style filtering and parental controls applied at the device level do not always reach. Some data is processed outside the UK GDPR perimeter, depending on the app.
Children of diaspora families use these apps mostly to keep up with grandparents and cousins overseas - voice notes, photos of school events, and family group chats are the most common patterns. Some join interest groups via QR-code invites, which is the standard way to enter a community on all three apps. A subset use the integrated mini-apps and games, which can include in-app purchases. Older teenagers sometimes use the payments feature for small transfers between friends. The translation features built into LINE and KakaoTalk make bilingual conversation easy, which is part of the appeal for second-generation children.
Friend Auto-Add
ตำแหน่ง: Settings -> Friends -> Auto-add (LINE) / Friend Settings (KakaoTalk) / Privacy (WeChat)
ตั้งค่าเป็น: Off
All three apps can automatically add anyone in the device's contact book. Turn this off so the child has to confirm every contact.
Allow Search by Phone Number or ID
ตำแหน่ง: Settings -> Privacy -> Allow search by phone / ID
ตั้งค่าเป็น: Off
Stops strangers finding the account by typing in a phone number, LINE ID, KakaoTalk ID, or WeChat ID.
Payments and Wallet
ตำแหน่ง: Wallet / Pay tab -> Disable or do not link card
ตั้งค่าเป็น: Not linked to a child account
Do not link a card to a child's account. Where a payment feature has been enabled by mistake, remove the card and set a PIN on the wallet.
Moments / Timeline Visibility
ตำแหน่ง: Settings -> Privacy -> Moments / Timeline
ตั้งค่าเป็น: Friends only
The social feed (Moments on WeChat, Timeline on LINE, KakaoStory on KakaoTalk) defaults can be wider than expected. Restrict to friends only.
Mini-Programs / In-app Games
ตำแหน่ง: Discover or Wallet tab
ตั้งค่าเป็น: Block in-app purchases at device level
Use device-level parental controls (Apple Screen Time or Android Family Link) to require approval for any in-app purchase, which catches mini-program payments too.
Sit with your child and turn off friend auto-add, phone number search, and ID search before the first contact is added
เวลา: 15 minutes
Decide which family members overseas are added and check that group invitations are coming from someone the child actually knows
เวลา: 15 minutes
Confirm no card is linked to the wallet, and use device-level parental controls to gate in-app purchases
เวลา: 10 minutes
Talk about the in-app browser - links sent in chat open inside the app and may not be filtered by the family broadband or device control
เวลา: 10 minutes
ตรวจสอบล่าสุด: 2026-06-14
เนื้อหาต้นฉบับภาษาอังกฤษ: /apps/line-kakaotalk-wechat