Month: December 2020

Parental Control on TikTok

December 25, 2020 admin Leave a comment Parental Controls

It wouldn’t be wrong to say that TikTok has managed to become the world’s most famous and loved social media application, especially for tweens and teens today. The application is free of cost and provides a platform to its users for creating, watching, and sharing their own personal short videos with other such users globally. The application managed to gain so much popularity that it ranked as the second most installed app in both Apple store and Google store in 2019. Today, TikTok is used widely by all age groups but the tweens and teens are the most attractive audience of this app.

What does TikTok offer to its users and why are kids attracted to it?

TikTok offers its users a creative platform where they act out on tracks of all kinds. These tracks include comedy, intense and musical ones of famous songs from around the world. With lip-syncing and dancing, tiktokers from around the world are able to come up with creative short videos with various kinds of effects and transitions.

Kids are mostly attracted to this application due to the fact that the application offers them a platform to showcase their acting, stunts, and dancing abilities in ways they prefer the most. The kids consider themselves as lip-syncing and dancing stars as they play around with the popular songs and tracks available on the application. They then share their content with other users and feel appreciated through comments and likes on their videos.

How can TikTok be harmful to kids?

TikTok may be a well-known and creative social media application but has managed to be harmful when it comes to kids or tweens using it. Just like any other social media, some of the content available on the social media application is too explicit for children. Moreover, the content available on the site does not have disclaimers regarding the specific age group that is mature enough to watch the video. In other words, Parental guidance (PG) disclaimers are not available and since kids have easy access to the application (also because it’s free of cost) they can just view anything they want to. Not only this, but the application has also been used as a source to sexually target kids by such predators. Cyberbullying is also easily possible on TikTok.

Not to forget, the application often has dangerous challenges circulating that involve stunts which can cause a child some serious physical or mental issues. For instance, a challenge known as the ‘Skull Breaker challenge’ caused many children to get hospitalized.  The application is also highly addictive and hence can result in more screen time for a child.

What steps can be taken to minimize the dangers for kids?

If a parent is not willing to completely block the application out for their child or teen, there are a few steps that parents can take to save their kids from the harmful aspects of the application. However, there is not a 100% guarantee that it will completely block all the negative aspects we just looked around but it would help to a high extent. The TikTok application itself has some inbuilt settings that contain parental controls in order to limit exposure via the application for kids. Below are some key controls parents can activate on their child’s device or gadget.

1.    Set Time Limits

The first step a parent can take in order to limit their kid’s usage is that they can set a time limit for their child to make videos or move around TikTok. This can be done easily by going into the Digital WellBeing section of the settings of the application. Screen Time Management can be found there where the parent can adjust the limit up to 2 hours accordingly.

2.    Set Age Limits

To begin with, the application itself states in their terms and conditions how it’s only available to those who are 13 and older hence tweens should not be given access. Not only this, but the application itself advises how those who are 16 and above in age are suitable users for the application as explicit content may be found on TikTok as well.

In case a parent feels their child can get access to the application, they can easily set a control on the child’s device. This would block the child from installing any such application that has a certain age limit placed on it.

3.      Make the Account of the child private

A child may be willing to show his or her creativity through the content they make to the entire world however that isn’t suitable until or unless the child reaches the age of an adult. When the application is installed the default setting for each account is public which means anyone around the world can view the content shared. To get rid of this issue, one can just do a few clicks and make the account private.

This option is present in the safety and privacy section of the account settings. Once, the account is made private only those can view the content shared by the account who are approved by the account holder themselves.

4.    Turn on the Restricted Mode

If the account is used by a child, it would be advisable to activate the restricted mode so that it helps filter out content that is too mature or explicit for the child. However, this gives no guarantee that they wouldn’t be any inappropriate content at all but it does help limit it to some extent. To activate this mode the user can tap on the Restricted Mode present under the tab of Digital Wellbeing.

Bottom Line

Even though these parental controls can be beneficial in limiting access to explicit content for kids, it is likely that kids and tweens will manage to get rid of it one day or another. That means, even after parents manage to activate these controls, they must remain vigilant as to what their kid is doing on the application. The best way to counter such situations is to explain to the kids about the consequences they can face if they use the platform carelessly.

PARENTAL CONTROLS ON ANDROID: A GUIDE

December 17, 2020 admin Leave a comment Android, Parental Controls

In this continuously developing world, it is ultimately impossible to monitor and invigilate everything. The same problem is with mobile usage, specifically android phones. People all over the world are addicted to their phones and spend most of their time in a virtual world rather than the actual world. This addiction has not spared the children even. Children spend most of their time on phones, they are not fully grown yet, and their minds and body are 2 times more vulnerable than adults. The radiations coming out of these androids are hazardous in nature and have the potential of disrupting the neural signals of the brain. Recent research suggests that a child’s brain absorbs two times more radiation than an adult brain due to their thinner skull, more absorption power, and relatively smaller size.

Parental authority over the usage of android is very important. As much as these phones have shrunk the world and as much as we love this invention, it has derailed the youth. The non-ionizing radiations coming out of these gadgets are higher in frequency and energy. These radiations are very harmful especially for the children and the unborn babies. The microwave radiations cause degeneration of a protective sheath around the fetus. The crime rate has dramatically increased due to these phones. Free access to pornographic, paedophilic, and abusive content has increased the juvenile tendencies in the youth.

The excessive use of the android is also associated with certain physiological and mental conditions such as low IQ, long or short-sightedness, sleep deprivation, improper mental growth, and other psychological conditions. Researches also suggest that the excessive use of these phones can cause cancers in children and adults. The increasing tiredness and fatigue are also a result of this phone addiction.

Android Monitoring Strategies for Parents:

Keeping in mind these inevitable issues, researchers have developed a number of strategies including some applications that can help parents monitor the usage of the android phone. These parental control apps can increase your sense of control and help you keep an eye on your child. Remember that it is very important to have an open conversation about responsible device usage, so your child does not try to immediately get rid of the app or find an alternative solution to it.

●       Web Filtering:

The most important thing is to filter the content for your child. This web filtering prevents your child from opening any age-inappropriate website. These browsers blocks webs that fall under the banned categories such as gambling, pornography, violence, etc.

●       App Blocking:

The second most important area is to restrict children from using certain apps on the phone. This is specifically useful to the parents who want to prevent their child from using social media apps or messaging services that are difficult to monitor or websites that use VPN to get around to the content. This included applications, such as Boomerang, that blocks every other app that your child installs until you approve it.

●       Time Restriction:

Another easy way is to download time restriction apps over your phones. These apps help reduce the screen time of your children, such as Norton’s family premiere and family time. It specifies the hours of the day that your child can spend on the phone and allows you to schedule a time that you deem appropriate for your child to use their phone.

●       Reporting Locations and Emergencies:

The ideal app is one that can keep track of the child’s location and keep in check the history of their browsers too. Apps like Norton family premiere and Qustodio offer this service. Certain services like Locategy, Boomerang, and Family time allows you to draw geographical boundaries around your child. These apps will trigger a response whenever your child tries to leave a certain geographical location. These apps also allow you to put in an SOS button, in case of any emergency. Whenever the child presses the button, it immediately sends a notification to the parent’s phone and the alarm will keep ringing until the child or the parent presses the turn off button.

Android Monitoring Applications for Parents:

In order to help best protect your child. We are providing you a list of free applications that can keep an eye on our child’s activity, whether they are working on some school project, having a chat with their friends, or just enjoying everything good that the internet has to offer. The protection is not only limited to the phones, but it extends to the MAC, computer, or iPad that your child is using

●       Family Shield by Open DNS:

Family shield is a special service offered by the Open DNS application. It automatically blocks websites or content that falls under the category of pornography, tasteless, abusive, or violent. It blocks content on a router level rather than an individual level.

●       KidLogger:

This app monitors the words that your child types, the website they visit, the programs they use, and the screenshots they take. There is also a sound recorder that activates automatically when your child talks to someone online. This app only covers one device at a time.

●       Spyrix:

Spyrix is a free keylogger. It notifies you about what your kid is typing and if they are in trouble. This app has a bad name because generally it is used by crooks who try to capture the passwords of other people, but it can also be used for your child’s good. It does not stop your child from doing any bad, but it does notify you about what they are up to.

These are just some of the applications that can be used by the parents to monitor their android usage. Others include Qustodio, Kaspersky Safe Kids, Norton, Mobicip etc. These applications not only make this virtual world a safer place for your child, but they also allow your child to take full advantage of this super amazing invention.

Norton family parental control

December 4, 2020 admin Leave a comment Parental Controls

Norton Family parental control is one of the best parental control software for Android and Windows, in this article, we will give the information you need to know about this

 

Introduction

Are you worried about what your child looks at on the internet and on social media? As your children grow, it becomes difficult to restrict them from using mobile devices. To cater to such problems, this technologically-evolved world has brought a number of effective solutions for parents. One such thing is the Norton Family parental control software!

This software allows you to place limits over time as well as content that your child can access. No matter how many devices you want to control, Norton Family delivers it all under a single subscription. Although it is not the cheapest parental control software, the wide range of features that it has to offer makes every dollar worth it.

Let’s look into some of its most significant features, pricing, and compatibility. This will help you figure out if Norton Family is a suitable option for you!

Features of Norton Family

Norton Family offers some amazing services for parents, making it easier to keep an eye on their child’s online activities. Here’s what it has to offer:

Web Filtering and Monitoring

Web filtering and monitoring is the best feature of Norton Family. You can choose the supervision level from high, moderate, or low. High level blocks selected websites; moderate level triggers a warning but allows access while low level only monitors the online activity.

Other than this, you can block certain categories. Norton Family allows you to choose from 48 distinctive categories such as mature content, job search, file sharing, etc.

You can also select the restricted and allowed websites.

Time Limits

You can set the time allowed for each device. You can also schedule the usage for every day. When your children are running out of time, they will get the notification of blocked apps. Even though they can view the House Rules, they cannot change the allowed time.

Texting and Calling Management

Norton Family does not provide very impressive service in this regard. You can monitor the text messages, block certain contacts, and look over new contacts but your child receives a notification that messages are being monitored. Also, it does not monitor MMS.

Norton Family does not allow recording calls or blocking a certain number through an app. So, you cannot prevent your child from calling blocked numbers.

Geofencing

This is the location tracking feature. You can view the current as well as previous locations of your child simply by entering the date and time. This feature is really useful for your children’s safety and in case of emergencies.

Video Supervision

This feature lets you view a small clip from the video your child has watched on YouTube or Hulu. It works on all the devices – Windows, Android, and iOS.

Social Media Supervision

This feature works on Windows only and, since children usually access social media accounts on mobile devices through apps, this feature does not provide any significant value.

Search History

You can easily view whatever your children have searched for. It works on all the devices and creates a work cloud page on the parental interface, making it easy for you to go through the list and details.

Pricing

Until early 2018, Norton Family was offering free-tier services. Then, it moved to a yearly subscription under the Norton Family Premier. However, now it offers a single subscription option only and has removed Premier from its name. So if you come across the older name, you know what it means.

This yearly subscription comes at US $49.99 per year. The best thing about this subscription is that you can set up unlimited devices and create unlimited children accounts. This is great for large families as well as for families living together. Under this subscription, parents have access to all the features.

Norton keeps introducing various discounts and free-tiers time to time. Keep an eye out to get your hands on any such offer!

Compatibility

When it comes to compatibility, Norton Family parental control software works amazingly well on Android and Windows. It is also compatible with iOS but has limited features to offer there. For instance, Norton Family monitoring software is compatible with Android (4.0 and above), Windows (XP and above), and iOS (9 and above).

However, the parental software only runs on Windows and Android; you cannot install it on iOS.

As for Mac, neither monitoring nor parental software works but you can access the web interface from Mac.

This makes it a great option for Android and Windows users. iOS users need to rethink if they want $49.99 yearly subscription to seek parental control.

Usability

Installing, creating accounts, and running Norton Family is exceptionally easy. With its user-friendly web interface, you can navigate and look into everything quite conveniently. The Android parental app, unfortunately, does not have a simple interface. It is best to stick with the web interface if possible.

According to your child’s age, Norton does a great job in setting up some rules by default. This eliminates the need to start everything from scratch. However, you can still go to settings and rules anytime to make any desired changes.

The first thing you need to do is to create your Norton Family account. You can either do it on the web or install the app on your Android or iOS device. Next, add your child or children’s information.

Once children accounts are created, you need to install Norton Family on the devices that your children use. Sign into your account and choose the children using that device. Look into the rules and you are good to go!

Final Words

If you have Android or Windows devices in your household, the Norton Family parental control software is highly cost-efficient and parent-friendly. However, if your children use iOS devices, then you cannot access all the features. As for yourself, you will have to access the parental software through the web.

As far as features are concerned, it offers all the top-notch services that parents desire. From not letting your children share personal information, to accessing healthy content only, parents enjoy the upper hand!