Parents are well aware of the different troubles their kids can face in the digital world. They are concerned and they want to keep a watch. According to the Pew Research Center, parents take up different ways for that. In this survey, 61% parents checked the sites they visit, 60% checked their social media accounts, 48% looked through their phone calls and texts and 55% limited their phone use.
While it is necessary to keep a check and control their screen exposure, it is also a fact that kids don’t like a hands on approach. Teenagers are privacy conscious and want to be independent. It is important for their growth but, it also means they can do unsafe things. This age is adventurous, they think more about the excitement and thrill and less about the outcome. They don’t consider how a simple act can go wrong on the internet or how extreme usage of their devices can affect their health.
Spying Is Damaging
So, naturally, parents tend to check their activity. But, spying on them can damage your relationship. First off, you lose their confidence and trust. Up till now you’ve been teaching them about trust and respecting others and when they find out you are spying on them they immediately start doubting you. It can also cause them to lash out and react badly. They might end up doing rash things which otherwise they wouldn’t have. Also, when you snoop, you are actually breaching their privacy which is wrong and sends a negative message to them.
Digital Ways of Supervision
Instead of spying, take a more sophisticated approach. Yes, there are digital ways to do all the supervision and they don’t require checking their phone activity behind their back. Parental control apps like FamilyTime let parents supervise and regulate their smartphone use. The kids know about it and it all happens after their approval. Here is what you can do:
Phone and the internet Monitoring
You can monitor their cellular and internet activities. Get daily reports and alerts as well. You can see:
- Call details
- Complete contact list
- Text messages
- Internet history
- Frequently surfed sites
- Bookmarks
- Installed applications
App and screen time restrictions
You can apply different restriction such as:
- Block the unsafe apps.
- Reduce screen time by locking their phones.
- Filter adult content
Family locating
You can also use it to keep tabs on their movement outside the house:
- See location history to prevent sneaking out at night or going to dangerous neighborhoods.
- Create virtual fences around different places
- Get notifications on reaching or leaving the geofenced places
- Get SOS alerts from your kids
- Get pick-up reminders with location maps.
Get FamilyTime from iTunes or Google Play store or just click on the buttons below:
Snoop-free parenting!
Spying or snooping won’t go in your favor, in fact, it can end up destroying your relationship with your kids. You certainly don’t want that so it is recommended to use parental control apps for this purpose. It is essential to monitor their activity in order to keep them safe from the dangers of cyberbullying, text bullying, screen addiction, and other hazards. So, embrace parental controls and say hello to supervision without spying!