Do your kids have gmail accounts? How old do you have to be?

[HeidiKC]

I tried setting up a gmail account for ds12, and it said he wasn't old enough. I can't find info that tells the minimum age for an account, but from reading people's questions about it - it sounds like it is 18 or even 21???

[TraciWA]

I set one up for my dd just after she turned 13.

[HeidiKC]

I set one up for my dd just after she turned 13.

 

Phew - and used her real birthday?! That's only 2 months away, so we could wait.

[TraciWA]

Yes, real birthday and my ds got one last year at 15.

[CyndiLJ]

I am setting them up for our kids, although we will not allow them to have email access yet. However, we wanted them to be able to save their own favorites on Chrome, and that was one way to do it while sharing computers. So they all have addresses w/gmail, and can pull up Chrome, sign in, and then have their own stuff saved...and their own calendar as well.

 

However, with 12, 13 and 14 year olds, we are a couple years away at least from having an open email account for them to use.

 

Cindy

[HeidiKC]

I am setting them up for our kids, although we will not allow them to have email access yet. However, we wanted them to be able to save their own favorites on Chrome, and that was one way to do it while sharing computers. So they all have addresses w/gmail, and can pull up Chrome, sign in, and then have their own stuff saved...and their own calendar as well.

 

However, with 12, 13 and 14 year olds, we are a couple years away at least from having an open email account for them to use.

 

Cindy

 

Did you give the correct birthdate for your 12yo? I tried to set one up for ds12 and it wouldn't let me because he's not old enough. Wondering how you were able to do that. You mean a gmail email address, right?

[Mom in High Heels]

Indy is 9 and has one. I just upped the years to make him over 13. He only uses it to communicate with grandparents, a select few friends in the States and James Bond, now that he is in Afghanistan. He cannot access it without me though since he doesn't have the password.

[WVNA]

You have to be 13 to get a gmail/facebook/etc account. However, many parents just lie about their children's age to get them access if they are younger than 13. You'd be amazed at how many kids who are younger than 13 have those type of accounts.

[marbel]

My kids have had gmail accounts for a while; I'm sure my daughter was not 13 when we set hers up. But, I don't remember an age requirement. We wouldn't have set it up if she had been underage. I wonder if that is new!

[amo_mea_filiis.]

Dd has one with a 13 or 14 birthdate. She has no access to it. My father created it for her after he got her an itunes credit and we realized that she needed her own itunes account. She also can't download anything from itunes without the password, and she knows no passwords.

[Lizzie in Ma]

You need to be 13.

[Mimm]

I set them up for my kids and lied about their age. They needed them to use Khan Academy. :)

[Princess Peach]

I set up gmail accounts for each of my kids under my name and then just changed the name from mine to my kids' in the settings.

[JeanM]

My kids got gmail accounts several years ago, and nobody ever asked their ages. Now you can't sign up until you are 13. My dc use their gmail accounts to communicate with their cousins and with a few friends.

[Calm37]

My kids have had gmail accounts for a while; I'm sure my daughter was not 13 when we set hers up. But, I don't remember an age requirement. We wouldn't have set it up if she had been underage. I wonder if that is new!

 

:iagree: This must be somewhat new. Our girls have had gmail accounts for several years and we haven't lied about ages when those requirements come up. We started out with yahoo accounts, but the ads were too mature, even for me! I finally have an ad blocker.

[Parrothead]

Dd has one. I think gmail thinks she is 56. :tongue_smilie:

[SuperDad]

I set them up for my kids and lied about their age. They needed them to use Khan Academy. :)

 

Same here.

[Farrar]

I got my kids theirs when they were five and I'm 99% sure it didn't ask their age. So I'm also thinking something changed.

[Jennay]

The age requirement must be new. DH set up gmail accounts for all the kids a few years ago so they had an email addy with their name before it got taken by someone else (we have a fairly common last name). They don't actually use them yet.

[marbel]

So, what is the purpose for an age requirement on an email account? I had said earlier that we wouldn't have lied about our kids' ages to set up accounts, but as I think it over I'm not so sure anymore. If a child has a purpose for an email account (to use Khan Academy, to be on a Scout troop mailing list, whatever), what difference does it make how old the child is?

 

And, why is 13 the magic age? I know plenty of 13-year-olds (and up) who are not careful with their online privacy, have no clue about etiquette, etc.

 

Is it just lawsuit protection for the provider?

[DarlaS]

I set them up for my kids and lied about their age. They needed them to use Khan Academy. :)

 

I have two e-mail addresses and between mine and dh's was able to set my kids up with Khan Academy accounts without them having a google account.

 

Silly that Khan Academy does not have an easy way for kids to have an account to keep track of their energy points and badges. You can access virtually EVERYTHING on the site except for keeping track of energy points and badges etc without it.

[Scuff]

DS has one. I put in DH's birthday. Since they share a name, technically, I guess, it's dh's. He has terrible handwriting and I wanted him to be able to use google docs for school. He doesn't use the email or anything else.

[Elm in NJ]

My son had his account set up the morning of his 13th birthday. I woke up that morning and he was just waiting for me to say OK. He waited for 2 years because I refused to up his age. My twins will also wait till they are 13.

[NittanyJen]

Some time ago khan and gmail partnered up to create 'educational' email accounts for kids under 13. You can do it there (at Khan Academy) without lying about ages, or at least you could a coup,e of months ago.

 

Doesn't the rule stem from some federal rule about minors and the Internet that set 13 as a minimum age for agreeing to anything? Some child protection act?

 

I just created 2 additional accounts "for myself" with google that had names friendly to my kids' use, and allowed them to know, but not change, the passwords. I figure I, not the government, am the parent and have decision making authority over my kids.

[Mom22ns]

The age 13 comes COPPA, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. You can read it here. It was designed to protect the privacy of children and give parents control.

 

Dd impatiently awaited her 13th birthday to get Facebook. I setup Google accounts for them years ago and didn't have to lie about ages, but when Google added Google+ they changed their account settings to require the 13 yo age limit. My dd tried to add Google+ and was locked out of all her Google accounts including Google docs which we used for school. I had to lie about her age and pay a dollar to regain access to all the school documents we had stored there. :glare:

[DarlaS]

Some time ago khan and gmail partnered up to create 'educational' email accounts for kids under 13. You can do it there (at Khan Academy) without lying about ages, or at least you could a coup,e of months ago.

 

Doesn't the rule stem from some federal rule about minors and the Internet that set 13 as a minimum age for agreeing to anything? Some child protection act?

 

I just created 2 additional accounts "for myself" with google that had names friendly to my kids' use, and allowed them to know, but not change, the passwords. I figure I, not the government, am the parent and have decision making authority over my kids.

 

We must have just missed it then. I set up my kid's Khan Academy accounts very recently.

 

And :iagree: with the bolded.

[Brenda in FL]

My kids have accounts set up under my husband's gmail account. I guess they are just subaccounts belonging to him, but the addresses are identifiable to the kids. When he checks email - he sees all the emails to the various accounts. The kids can just sign in under their own address as well and not see dh's emails.

[Sparkle]

Yes, the age is supposed to be 13, but I went ahead and set up accounts for them and changed their birthdates. The kids like to email their cousins and other relatives, and I like to be able to email them links, and keep track of their writing assignments on Google Docs.

[Nestof3]

I signed my boys up for their own accounts, so I must have been dishonest about their ages. :tongue_smilie:

[Nestof3]

My kids have accounts set up under my husband's gmail account. I guess they are just subaccounts belonging to him, but the addresses are identifiable to the kids. When he checks email - he sees all the emails to the various accounts. The kids can just sign in under their own address as well and not see dh's emails.

 

I didn't know this was possible. I don't remember seeing that option.

[TranquilMind]

You have to be 13 to get a gmail/facebook/etc account. However, many parents just lie about their children's age to get them access if they are younger than 13. You'd be amazed at how many kids who are younger than 13 have those type of accounts.

Why is this? You can be any age and have yahoo or other accounts? I never noticed any age requirement.

[TranquilMind]

My kids got gmail accounts several years ago, and nobody ever asked their ages. Now you can't sign up until you are 13. My dc use their gmail accounts to communicate with their cousins and with a few friends.

 

Exactly. Is it because Facebook and Google are selling all of your personal information? I think I read something about how you (oddly) could consent to this privacy invasion at 13.

 

No info at all should be required. One of my favorite websites still has no sign up after 15 years. Everyone is totally anonymous. No email sign up. No one has accounts. And it is a great site where many of us have gotten to know each other over the years. If a spammer happens along, they block him. It works just great. THIS is the way the internet should operate. I've had just about enough of privacy invasion everywhere.

[Embassy]

I signed my kids up for a gmail address when they were 7 and 9. I don't remember any issues with age. Maybe because I considered them my accounts. My kids cannot access their emails without me typing in the password.

[HeidiKC]

My kids have accounts set up under my husband's gmail account. I guess they are just subaccounts belonging to him, but the addresses are identifiable to the kids. When he checks email - he sees all the emails to the various accounts. The kids can just sign in under their own address as well and not see dh's emails.

 

I think this might be where you have a Google apps domain with 5 free accounts or something?

[Martha in GA]

And my dh had to pay 50 cents via credit card to verify that he was allowing her to have one? I think he said the 50 cents then goes to charity. If I had known, I would have just waited another six months before allowing her to have one.

 

Martha

[ChristyB in TN]

I am sure you have to be 13 but I have set the accounts up for my kids before they hit that age and I use my birthday, I am the one setting up the account. It has been necessary for them to have their own email addresses and nothing bad has happened. I am just not afraid. They've all had Facebook and twitter accounts, too. My husband and I are friends with them, follow them on twitter, and feel comfortable with it.