Updated April 2021. As parents and guardians, we want our children to be protected online and use the net safely. The good news is there's much we can do for free. Good parenting means setting up parental controls on the devices our kids use to access the internet.
Much as we'd like to be there for our kids every minute of every day, we just can't. Using free parental control, there's a great number of things we can do out of the box for free, which is great. 👍 Two important things to watch for, switch off 'In-App' purchases and switch on 'Parental control'. These are two things you have to switch on, yourself. Read our article for Ten great reasons.
The kids favourite, TikTok, also super enjoyed by young adults in 2021, formerly Musical.ly now owned by China's Bytedance, Police world wide say it is vital to be safe on TikTok. Here's how to make TikTok safe
Most devices include parental controls, you just need to use them, check Youtube for how to do it (this example shows how to set up protection on Chrome). In this guide, we have written up the directions for setting up parental controls on your devices. Setting up Chrome protection is pretty easy (Parental Controls).
Go to "Content Settings" in Chrome and check what has already been viewed. Ensure that Google's kid's search is on. Go to Google's internet search results page (SERP) then go to "Settings" tick on "SafeSearch." You can use Chrome-based parental control, for example, "Babysitter for Google Chrome" to block certain sites, and set time restraints. For free, today. But it will only be for Chrome, better than nothing.
Just like Chrome, Mozilla has parental control blocking such as Adult Content, violence. Firefox will check to see if you are running online protection for children on your PC or MAC and immediately apply it.
If not Firefox has settings that you can use to control your kid's access to nasty sites. For example, you can switch off the 'remember passwords' option and stop your kids' accessing password-protected sites.
There are other parental controls accessible on Firefox, for example, "Block site" and "FoxFilter". We have checked this and it's easy to set up and quite effective. Make sure that Firefox is the only active browser. You can also block Snapchat, Fortnite.
Click here to go directly to kids protection in Firefox
Internet MicExplorer/ Microsoft Edge Microsoft surprisingly does a good job in parental controls. Go to "Web Choices" and choose the "Content" tab, look for "Content Counselor.". You can choose what type of site you want to block for your kids, sex, hate, crime, violence, betting, arms, etc.
They have nice slider bars to different restriction settings under this territory from " everything is permitted" to " everything is blocked" Create a list of permitted sites for your children to use the "Good sites" tab.
This setup the range of parental control that you want to install for your child protection. Microsoft Instructions XBox and Windows10 Television Parental Controls
New TV sets have parental controls. Check before purchasing a new TV, does this TV have parental control options. preventing access to specific channels or have television switch itself 'off' after a specified amount of time.
On the Telly, press "Menu" on your remote control. Scroll through the choices. You'll either find a "Lock" alternative or "Parental Controls." To do all this you will need your Wi-Fi password from the house router. TV's are monitors now more than Televisions, connected to Playstation. Select the "Lock" or "Parental Controls" choice. You will need to enter a password. Make sure controls are also set up on Playstation and other gaming devices. Set the locking highlights you need to utilize or as per your needs. Select the "Spare" catch to spare your settings. We tested LG, Samsung and Sony for this article and found the control pretty strong especially on Sony. Mastering the remote, buttons on the side of the TV's was a different matter. Not easy! It all takes patience. Parental Controls for Sony and Samsung here Sony Samsung Parental Controls
The big one, nothing has more need for parental controls than smartphones and tablets. That is because it's so simple for kids to open certain applications and spend money on credit cards attached to App and Apple Pay. Android Devices | Android have made it simpler to restrict and control access for your children with improved access.
To do this: Go to "Settings" then to "Clients". Make different profiles for everyone in the house. Follow the directions to finish the setup. Go to your children's profile. There you can set up parental controls. To set up parental controls for Play Store: Open the Play Store app. Tap "Menu" on the upper left section. Go to "Settings" and tap on "Parental Controls. "Turn on parental controls. Create a PIN. Pick a PIN for just you, etc etc,
Choose what the kids can see, when they are allowed to watch it. Select content filtering. Beyond the Play Store, there are more parental control applications download, web filtering, etc. These will control messaging, calling, surfing (with content control)
Podcasts Listen back to some of our radio interviews and updates on online safety for all of us.
Below is Apple's new Screentime feature, its not perfect by any means but it's a start. The usage figures are not yet reliable for the App limits, downtime and time limits seem to work well. Works on iPhone, iPads and Macbooks. Below is the Macbook version.
iOS Screentime on iPhone, worth a go. Click and Go.
Go to "Settings" and tap "Screen Time." Select either "This is My device" or "This is My Kid's device." Enter a password for access to the device's features. Tap "Content and Security Limitations." Enter the password when asked and turn on "Content and Privacy." Prevent purchasing in iTunes & Application Store. "iTunes and Application Store Buys" and select "Don't Allow. We always recommend that Card is disconnected specifically and always switch off 'In-App Purchases'. Stop Siri web search :> Go to "Content Limitations" and search for Siri. Switch off
Head over to "Game Center" to limit gaming. Select your settings. By seeing how to set up different parental control measures for all your devices at home, you'll be increasingly able to control kids' internet safety and build confidence. This offers kids the chance to enjoy the internet giving you peace of mind.
Amazon Switch off 'In-App' purchase on Amazon
Google Chrome - YouTube
Mozilla Firefox
Apple iPod, iPad, iPhone
Xbox & Windows 10:
Nintendo:
Sony Television settings
PlayStation Network For PS4
These are some of our most-read articles about parental control, online safety from our blogs.
Internet Safety Tips for Kids - Keeping Kids Safe Online 10k + reads Fortnite - Explained Is it good for my kids? Don't spend a penny on your children's online protection, here's how!
Our #1 Selling Parental Control App
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