Talk to your teen tonight about 764

Hi friends,

We’re in the last stretch of the year…somehow? It’s like Halloween wrapped and then we got transported into the holidays with zero warning. If your group chat is already a parade of “who’s bringing what” and “which concert is when,” we feel you. Consider this your gentle nudge from us: before the calendar turns into a game of Tetris, pick a few things to savour. Like one cozy movie night, a family walk after dinner, or a phone-free hot chocolate chat. The parties can wait; the moments can’t.

A quick holiday heads-up (especially if a first phone is on the wish list):
A lot of parents give phones this time of year, and we love a good surprise, but let’s make sure the “surprise” isn’t what’s actually out there online. If you’re considering giving them their first phone, our Screen Sense Guide is for you. It’s the calm, step-by-step plan we wish we’d had the first time around. Learn more here.

—Cat & Nat

What parents need to know about “764” (please read + share)

We flagged 764 a few months ago and our DMs blew up. So many parents had no idea. As a refresher, 764 is a decentralized network that targets kids in gaming chats and DMs, then uses shame, threats, and sextortion to control them. 764 refers to the beginning of the ZIP code of the group’s founder. The FBI now has 250+ cases open across all 55 field offices and warns this group coerces vulnerable youth into horrific on-camera acts. One thing we want to make clear is that this isn’t happening somewhere else on the internet. It’s here, in our communities, happening to kids we might know.

A Canadian family just shared their story after their teen was groomed and lured into classic 764 tactics. If your kids are in group chats, on Discord, or gaming servers, please read about it and share with your communities. We need more parents to be aware of this threat.

How to talk about it tonight:

• Lead with empathy and information: Talk about safety, not shame or punishment. “If anything weird ever happens online, I’m your exit plan, not your enemy.”

• Name the tactics: Love-bombing, escalating dares, requests to film acts, threats to share screenshots. Help them understand how these are manipulation tools.

• Create an emergency plan: Teach them how to react if things start to feel off. And ensure they know they can come to you if they find themselves in a bad situation. 

• Explore reporting options: To report in Canada, use Cybertip.ca and engage with local police. To report in the United States, use https://www.ic3.gov/.

Meta’s December 16 privacy policy update

On December 16, 2025, Meta (who owns Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp) will begin using your interactions with Meta AI (their built-in chatbot/assistant) to personalize your content recommendations and ads. So basically, what you ask or say to Meta’s AI can influence the ads and posts you and your teen are shown. There’s no option to opt-out right now, though Meta says sensitive topics won’t be used for ad targeting. If your kiddo is playing around with Meta AI, that activity could shape their feeds across linked accounts.

If you or your kids are using Meta products, here’s our advice:

1. Lock down settings

   • Go to → Settings & Privacy → Privacy Center

   • Set Posts/comments/tagging = Friends (or tighter)

   • Limit who can find and tag you

2. Check AI features

   • See if your kid uses Meta AI on FB/IG/Threads

   • Decide together: use, limit, or off

   • Treat AI chats as public, not private

3. Teach the “why”

   • “Free” features feed data → feeds/ads

   • Think before you post; skip oversharing

   • Once it’s in a model, it’s hard to undo

Anyone else starting to think about holiday gifts? Same. We’ve been collecting recos from our teens, their friends, and our community DMs, and turned it into the Ultimate Teen Girl Gift List. It’s got cozy must-haves, creative kits, skincare faves, techy little upgrades. Basically all the thing our teen girls are loving this year.

And don’t worry, we’ll be back next week with the list for boys so stay tuned for that!

PS. For anyone in Toronto (or nearby), we’d love if you would come hang with us!
We’re hosting our 4th annual December to Remember and we literally can’t wait. It’s a night full of laughs, stories we probably shouldn’t tell, and mom-energy turned all the way up. Bring your best friend, your sister, your group chat, just come.
Grab your tickets here and make it your official holiday night out ❤️

—Cat & Nat