Gaming Chat and Strangers: What Parents of 5 to 10-Year-Olds Should Know

Gaming chat can be safe for a child aged 5 to 10, but only when a parent has set it up. Many games let children talk to people they have never met, by text or by voice. Check who can contact your child, limit or switch off chat, and play together while they are young.

Ofcom published new research on 13 October 2026 showing that talking to strangers through games is the top online gaming worry for UK parents. If that worry feels familiar, you are not alone. The settings that matter most, however, take about five minutes to check.

This guide explains who can talk to your child in games, what the warning signs look like, and what you can do this week. It also sticks to what Ofcom, the NSPCC, Internet Matters and the government have said, and it tells you where the evidence runs out. Games change often, so treat the steps as a checklist and look at the menus in your own child’s games.

What Is Gaming Chat and Who Can Your Child Talk To?

Gaming chat is any way players talk to each other inside a game. For example, it can be typed messages, voice chat through a headset or speaker, friend requests, or private messages between two players. However, who can reach your child depends on the game and on the settings.

The NSPCC says some games let players turn off communication features, mute voice chat and report other players. Other games also have large official channels where many players talk at once. The NSPCC warns that these large channels carry grooming and abuse risks, so it is worth knowing whether your child’s game has one.

However, a game’s age rating does not tell you any of this. The NSPCC points out that PEGI ratings, the age ratings used in the UK, do not include communication features. For example, a game can carry a low rating and still let your child chat with strangers. That is why the settings matter more than the rating.

How Common Is It for Children to Talk to Strangers in Games?

In fact, it is common. Ofcom reports that 55% of children who game online play with people they have never met offline, at least sometimes. One in five children does so all or most of the time they play.

Parents are also worried about it. Ofcom found that 64% of parents of 3 to 17-year-olds who game online are concerned about their child talking to strangers through games or their chat functions. That tops the list of worries, ahead of bullying by other players (60%), inappropriate content (59%) and pressure to make in-game purchases (51%).

However, worry does not always turn into rules. For example, Ofcom reports that 43% of parents set rules about who their child can play with online. Rules about how long a child plays (56%) and when they play (51%) are more common.

But these figures cover all the children in Ofcom’s research, not only 5 to 10-year-olds. Ofcom’s data for children aged seven or under came from parents, while children aged eight and over answered directly. Ofcom does not publish a separate figure for primary-age children here, but its main media use report found that 37% of parents of 3 to 7-year-olds say their child plays games online. So younger children are part of this picture.

What Are the Warning Signs in Gaming Chat?

Most gaming chat is ordinary. Children shout about the game, laugh and swap tips. The NSPCC and Internet Matters suggest watching for a few specific things:

• Someone asks for private information, such as a real name, address or school.
• Someone suggests moving the conversation to another messaging app. The NSPCC says to watch for “any suggestion of taking the conversation to other messaging platforms”.
• Words such as “whisper” or “private”, which can point to private messaging.
• Offers of free in-game currency that ask for a username and password. The NSPCC says these are often phishing scams.

However, none of these proves something is wrong. Instead, they are reasons to pause and ask. The NSPCC advises that if someone asks for private information or suggests another app, your child should tell you or another adult they trust. In our books, that person is a Safe Adult, and our guide on what a Safe Adult is can help you choose and name yours together.

Fake offers are also a common trick in games, because they work everywhere else online. Our guide to teaching children to spot fake messages, scams and online tricks gives you simple ways to practise this at home.

What Can You Do This Week to Make Gaming Chat Safer?

Ofcom’s Parents: Power Up campaign gives a simple routine: Check, Chat, Change. Ofcom suggests spending about five minutes on each step, so the whole check is quick. Here is how that looks for a child aged 5 to 10.

Your five-step checklist

Then sit in the room for a while. Both the NSPCC and Ofcom suggest playing games together and taking an interest in what your child plays. It is the quickest way to see how the chat actually works, because you watch it happen.

What Are Games Doing to Protect Younger Children?

Some platforms have also made changes. Ofcom says it has secured changes on Roblox, PlayStation and Xbox to strengthen protections for younger users. Ofcom also says the legal responsibility sits with the platforms, so the duty is theirs first. In addition, under the Online Safety Act, it says platforms must help prevent grooming, remove illegal content and run robust age checks.

In November 2025, Roblox announced that users would need to complete an age check, using facial age estimation or ID, before they could use chat. On 7 January 2026, Roblox said the requirement was being rolled out to all regions where chat is available. Chat is off by default for children under nine unless a parent consents after an age check, and by default users can chat with their own age group and the groups directly above and below it.

The NSPCC also gives some platform details. It says Roblox has no minimum age, and that under-13s need a parent’s permission for certain chat features. For Minecraft in the UK, it says a Microsoft account independent of parents needs the user to be 13, and under-16s with child accounts can be linked to a parent’s account. In addition, the profanity filter is on by default for child accounts.

However, company announcements are not the same as what your child’s account shows today. Settings and rules change, so check the menus yourself, and make sure the age on the account is correct.

What Is the Government Doing About Strangers in Games?

The government has announced a plan, but it is not law yet. On 15 June 2026 it said it intends to ban communication with strangers for under-16s, including in gaming. GOV.UK says this would not affect children’s ability to take part in multiplayer games online.

The House of Commons Library briefing, updated in October 2026, explains that a new section of the Online Safety Act 2023, added by the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026, requires the government to make regulations restricting how children use social media. The government has said it aims to lay them before Parliament by the end of 2026. Meanwhile, the government expects the new protections to start in spring 2027. We have not found published detail on how the stranger measure would work in individual games, so check GOV.UK for the latest position.

Until then, the settings are the protection you control.

How Do I Talk to My Child About Who They Play With?

Keep it short, curious and regular. Ofcom’s advice for the Chat step is to ask which games your child plays and who they play with, and to encourage them to tell you about anything upsetting or any strange messages. Try questions like these:

• “Who did you play with today?”
• “Do you know them in real life?”
• “Has anyone asked you for anything, or asked you to chat somewhere else?”
• “Is there anything in the game that felt odd or unkind?”

Also, say clearly that your child will not be in trouble for telling you. Both Ofcom and Internet Matters make this point. Children go quiet when they fear losing the game, so a calm reaction matters as much as the words.

If something worrying has happened, Ofcom advises staying calm and asking what happened. Depending on the situation, you might report the content, block users, or contact a helpline, the police or your child’s school. Our guide on helping a child feel safe after seeing something upsetting online covers the conversation afterwards.

Common Questions Parents Ask

Final Thoughts

Gaming chat is not something to fear, and it is not something to ignore. For most families, the answer is a few settings, a few simple rules and regular chats about who your child plays with.

You do not need to understand every game. Instead, you need to be the adult your child tells. A child who knows they will not be in trouble for mentioning a strange message is far more likely to mention it.

Games and settings change, so make the five-minute check a habit. Look at Ofcom and GOV.UK for the latest position before you act on any date in this guide.

Sources

• Ofcom, ‘Stranger danger’ tops parents’ online gaming worries, 13 October 2026
• Ofcom, Parents: Power Up, how you can help your child stay safe while gaming online, published 7 September 2026, updated 12 October 2026
• Ofcom, Children and Parents: Media Use and Attitudes report, 21 May 2026
• NSPCC, How to ensure your children stay safe while playing online games, 2026
• Internet Matters, Safe online gaming advice hub, last updated 31 July 2026
• Roblox, Roblox expands facial age checks for communication, 18 November 2025
• Roblox, Roblox Requires Users Worldwide to Age Check to Access Chat, 7 January 2026
• GOV.UK, Social media to be banned for under-16s, 15 June 2026
• House of Commons Library, Proposals to ban social media for children, briefing CBP-10468, October 2026