Learn how to put Parental Controls on Android and iPhone and have total control over what your kids are exposed to. We’ll be listing everything you need to know and how to keep your kids safe while using an Android phone or tablet.
In 2018, most kids own a smartphone and enjoy playing games like Temple Run and the likes. So it makes a lot of sense to set Parental Controls on your child’s Android or iPhone.
In the process, your kids might expose themselves to other apps and sites that are dangerous. Yes, kids, these days are very enthusiastic and willing to learn a lot. They might go to sites bookmarked on a browser or open apps like Facebook and others. That’s why Google talked about “Family Link” at Google I/O 2018.
Without further ado, let’s talk about how to put Parental Controls on Android and iPhone
How to Put Parental Controls on Android and iPhone
An app that lets you create a Google Account for your child, manage the apps they use and keep tabs on their screen time. You can also set a bedtime after which they are unable to use the device. This will let them sleep on time and be ready for school early the next morning.
Features of Family Links
- Manage the apps your child can use – Approve or block the apps your child wants to download from the Google Play store.
- Keep an eye on screen time – With this feature, you will be able to see how much time your child spends on their favourite apps with weekly or monthly activity reports, and set daily screen time limits.
- Set device bedtime – If you don’t want your children to be pressing their phones during bedtime, Family links help to remotely lock devices when it’s time for bed, or time to take a break.
- Manages your child’s purchases and downloads– With Family Links, you can manage the kind of apps your children download and install from the play store.
- Works on Android and iOS devices-Family require an Android or iOS device.
The app is currently available in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Ireland, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, the UK and the US, and on devices running Android 7.0 Nougat or later. It will be available globally soon enough. The app only works for kids under the age of 13, well, that’s up for you to decide. Once they hit 13, you can let them take over the account and have control if you want.
How To Use Family Link
- You need to first check if your device is compatible, once done, you can then go ahead to download the Family Link app from the Play Store.
- You might also check if your Android version is supported. According to Google, you can run Family Link efficiently if your Android version is Android 7.0 or higher. But there is a probability that devices with Android Marshmallow or Lollipop might be able to run it.
- Launch the app and click “Get Started”
- Select “Start” on the ‘Set up Family Link’ screen.
- Go ahead and follow the prompts to progress through the setup.
- You’ll be prompted to enter your child’s first, last names, birthday and gender with other questions as well, Press “Next.
- Choose a Gmail.com username and press next as well enter a password for the Gmail and press Next.
- You will need to agree to the T&Cs, and then add a credit card (Google can charge £0.01) This is done only to provide verification and donate to charity.
- After that, add the account to your child’s device by signing in using their account details.
- You’ll be prompted to enter your own Google password and press Next.
Family Link will now be installed on your child’s device, with this, you can review any apps preinstalled on the phone to approve if your child should be allowed to use them. You can filter apps like YouTube and other browsers if you want.
You can now do all that on your own Android device as well, like content filters, location tracking, app activity and screen time.
How To Add A User Account To Android
If you want to give your child your personal phone but still have parental control then you can create a separate user account for them. Just follow the steps below.
- Go to the device’s Settings menu, then, Go to Select Users.
- Now tap ‘Add user’ and ‘Set up now.
Conclusion
There you have it, the tutorial on how to put Parental Controls on Android and iPhone to monitor your kids and have total control of what they do with their device or yours.
Image Credit: Google
