How does parental control app work?

D. Baumrind Parental Control Apps

Parental control apps are software tools designed to help parents monitor, filter, limit, and block their children’s online activities across various internet-connected devices like phones, tablets, computers, gaming consoles, and smart TVs.

These apps generally work by:

  1. Installation and Linking: Parents typically download the app on their child’s device and link it to a control app on their own device, or set up child accounts managed through a parent’s account on platforms like Apple’s Family Sharing or Google Family Link. Some providers also offer devices with parental controls pre-installed.
  2. Enforcing Restrictions: Once set up, the apps implement various controls, including:
    • Screen Time Management: Setting daily time limits for device or specific app usage, and scheduling “bedtimes” or downtime when devices are inaccessible.
    • Content Filtering and Blocking: Preventing access to inappropriate websites or apps by maintaining blacklists or blocking entire categories of content such as adult material, gambling, or social media. Some can also filter content within emails, chats, and messages.
    • App Management: Requiring parental approval for new app downloads and monitoring time spent on individual applications.
    • Communication Monitoring: Tracking call and SMS history, approving contacts, and in some advanced apps, using AI to scan texts and social media for concerning content like cyberbullying or self-harm, then sending alerts to parents.
    • Location Tracking: Providing real-time GPS tracking, setting geofencing alerts for specific locations, and offering location history.
  3. System-Level and Network Controls: Parental controls can also be implemented at the operating system level (e.g., Apple’s Screen Time, Google Family Link), directly on Wi-Fi routers to filter content for all connected devices, or through search engine settings like Google’s SafeSearch to filter explicit results.

While parental controls offer significant benefits, they are not foolproof and can sometimes be bypassed by tech-savvy children or abusers. Therefore, they are most effective when combined with open communication and supervision.