Teenagers - iPhones - Parental Controls

[tehmackdaddy]

I am aware iPhones have a limited built in feature to control the content of a phone and it is password protected, but I am also aware this isn't a very good method to oversee/block what kids are able to access on their phones.

I now have two teenage daughters with iPhones and am looking for those with experience/knowledge of this subject. There are a large number of applications with a wide range of functions and a wide range in prices.

My main purpose is to block inappropriate content from their phones. Tracking their precise location at all times and reading every text message they send is probably overkill (but I'm not entirely against it ). I realize kids are going to be kids and get away with some things, but I'd like to responsibly limit it as best as I can.

What is everyone's experience in this arena? Or if you are very tech/savvy, what advice can you give?

Disclaimer for those who don't remember or know me: I have four total daughters, so price is definitely a concern as the cost will compound as the girls grow up.

Thanks in advance.

 

[aloyouis]

We outlawed Snapchat and I remotely erased any iPhone that was found to have it installed. It happened twice. Not since the second time.

We all use "Find My iPhone" to locate each other. None seem to mind although my son's two buddies (brothers) did leave their iPhones on the kitchen counter last night when the 3 of them went to the game store. It took me a few minutes to realize they didn't want their parents to know they went there....

As you said, they will singe their fingers.

 

[tehmackdaddy]

Speaking of SnapChat, there are so many Social Media applications out there I cannot keep up.

So other questions I have are:

-What are the currently popular apps?
-Which ones are safe?
-Which ones are not?
-What should I be looking out for?

Any advice from anyone is appreciated. I have my own ideas, but would really like to hear from others.

 

[Undertaker #59*]

I wish I could offer you something Tmack. Our kids are a little older, so we just avoided the problem by not letting them have cell phones until they were out of high school. (they really didn't need them and they are expensive) Computer time was monitored.

With four daughters, I feel for you. I hope you find something to ease your concerns.

 

[bideau]

I wish I could offer you something Tmack. Our kids are a little older, so we just avoided the problem by not letting them have cell phones until they were out of high school. (they really didn't need them and they are expensive) Computer time was monitored.

With four daughters, I feel for you. I hope you find something to ease your concerns.

Same here. My kids were in high school when cells were still a relative novelty and a flip phone was considered state of the art. I'm not envious of anyone with high schoolers today.

 

[tehmackdaddy]

To broaden the scope of the target audience, if you were/are a teen with a cell phone, what restrictions did your parents have that worked? What restrictions/apps didn't work? How did you get around them? What could have been done differently by your parents to prevent this?

 

[Beaglebay]

Check out Web Watcher and Teen Safe, for starters.

 

[patswin]

Netsanity. Pumpic. Two more apps

 

[Jaric]

Can't you just lock them in a tall tower somewhere until they're in their 30s?

 

[deec77]

Check out Web Watcher and Teen Safe, for starters.

Teen safe for sure! But tell your child what your doing.

~Dee~

---------- Post added at 09:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:10 PM ----------

Can't you just lock them in a tall tower somewhere until they're in their 30s?

I tried that but it didn't work now I have the 2nd generation I may be locking up too

~Dee~

 

[BostonTim]

I tried that but it didn't work now I have the 2nd generation I may be locking up too

~Dee~

So, with apologies to Chief Brody, you're gonna need a bigger tower?


Cheers, BostonTim

 

[PatsFanLisa]

BLOCK TINDER. Nuf said.

 

[Big/Sky/Fly]

Tinder, kik, pof, blendr, tingle, down, the list keeps growing and growing...oh wait, the "safe" ones.

 

[tehmackdaddy]

BLOCK TINDER. Nuf said.

How do I block a specific app? Or is that a feature one of the parental control apps offers?

 

[chevss454]

https://www.commonsensemedia.org/cell-phone-parenting

Getting a cell phone has become a milestone for most kids. We can help you lay the groundwork for responsible cell phone use, and manage the challenges and opportunities they bring. Learn how to decide when your kid is ready for a phone, set rules, choose the right phone and service plan, and stay on top of what your kid is doing on his or her phone.





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List of Websites to Block for Kids

http://pumpic.com/security/list-of-websites-to-block-for-kids/




5 Apps To Spy On Your Kids Without Them Knowing

It’s a dangerous world out there for your teens. These apps may help you keep track of it.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry...ure-on-their-tail_us_55afaff1e4b07af29d56f544




We told our kids we monitored their cell phone use when we gave them their first cell phone. Everything was above board and it was a condition of them getting a cell phone at age 10. They were fine with it.

 

[tehmackdaddy]

So it looks like Pumpic only works if the iPhones are jailbroken, and I have to manually set up the websites to be blocked (which seems impossible to keep up with).

Bleh.

 

[tehmackdaddy]

Tinder, kik, pof, blendr, tingle, down, the list keeps growing and growing...oh wait, the "safe" ones.

How do I block an app?

 

[Undertaker #59*]

Can you load only apps you approve of and block the entire app store instead? I don't know, but just a thought.

 

[dchester]

I never had to worry about this stuff. Boys don't get pregnant.

:shrug_n:

 

[tehmackdaddy]

When my oldest (now 15) first got her cell phone, I changed the settings on her phone to only allow certain content (as determined by Apple) and was password protected. I'm not sure how reliable that is, though.

I just searched and found this, which is promising:

http://osxdaily.com/2013/12/12/block-access-adult-content-ios-filters/

Apple has long included various means of placing parental controls and filtering for content available on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, but up until recent iOS updates there was not a simple method of blocking web-based adult content and material in Safari. That has changed with iOS 7, which makes it extremely easy to prevent access to adult themed web sites and general content that is deemed inappropriate for youth. The web restrictions are very easy to toggle on and off and access to them is password restricted, which makes it perfect to quickly turn on before handing an iOS device off to a youngin’ for unsupervised use...

If anything these settings will buy me some time. I knew about the others for YouTube and whatnot, but am still looking into blocking particular apps.