Discord has exploded in popularity over recent years, reaching over 300 million people in 2020 and continuing to grow every day. This combination messaging app and social media app allows you to engage with people in servers and individually, but as with any other social media app, there are potential problems with safety. Here are five ways you can stay safer on Discord.

1. Learn More About How Discord Works

Most easily, you can just learn more about how Discord works. Discord allows you to chat in servers, which have other people that you might not be immediate friends with, or to chat one-on-one with friends. Balancing these two things can help you be safer on Discord, regardless of what you do specifically.

2. Think About Built-In Security Settings

There are many security settings that you can use as part of your Discord experience. Check the “Privacy & Safety” section in the User Settings to see a few optional safety settings. Especially if you’re already experiencing some safety issues, increasing these settings allows you to be safer in both servers and direct messages.

3. Be Careful With Your Server Choices

There are both small and large servers available on the Discord platform. Small servers may be invite-only, while large servers may have invitations available publicly for anyone to join. When you join a server, check out their rules and information on contacting moderators if things get out of hand. You can also leave servers if you’re uncomfortable with anything that’s happening in the server or turn off direct messages from members of that server.

4. Stay in Touch With Discord’s Safety Updates

There are regular updates to Discord’s safety features that allow you to maintain your mental well-being while you use the Discord app. The company’s website blog and update notes are the most common ways that you can learn more about safety feature updates, so make sure you’re paying attention to these things for the most recent information.

5. Be Careful Meeting Up With People in Person

It’s common to make friends online that you then consider real, important friends, just as close as your friends in real life. From there, it’s easy to make the jump to meeting them in person. However, it’s a good idea to wait at least a few months to meet new friends in person, and you’ll still want to be careful when you do. While online attacks aren’t common, they do happen, and taking common-sense steps can help significantly.

Conclusion

Discord has its safety concerns, but they’re not any more pressing than the concerns that you’ll face on other social media sites like Instagram and Facebook. As long as you’re following the same safety features that you would anywhere else online, you can stay safe on Discord just like you would elsewhere. These five tips can help you significantly in staying safe on Discord and beyond, as they’re good things to keep in mind anywhere you go online.