Parental Control App Recommendation

[RenaInTexas]

Hello,

I am in search of a good parental control app for my tween's cell, tablets, and PC. He has gotten text spam with links to porn. People contact him through apps trying to befriend him, etc... He has the cell phone and tablet for various reasons and one of those reasons is for him to learn to be a responsible user of technology before he is in high school.  However, it is clear to me that I need a good app that can automatically filter / block some of this stuff so that I can gradually release more control to him as he matures and ages. You can call it spying but I call it parenting. He and I have an understanding and he is fine with it - even brings me stuff and shows me. I had no idea the 'stuff' possible. So I need a good app to help me out. I have read about some and the (seemingly) best ones require a subscription per device. Is this correct? Any recommendations?

[Lady Florida.]

I haven't needed parental controls for years (youngest at home is 21) but I have a friend who really likes Circle. It's available for both Android and iOS. However you either need the Circle Home device or a compatible Netgear router. Apparently there's also a way to control what is accessed on phones mobile devices including tablets away from home. 

Edited October 8, 2018 by Lady Florida.

[Um_2_4]

Qustodio works on all devices except kindle fires. You can control time, websites, programs, etc.

I have 4 kids, so I have a subscription that covers 5 kids and up to 10 devices. I made the "5th kid" the school log in so when they want to do schoolwork on the computer they login on there and it is locked down to only school sites and programs to limit distractions.

[saw]

We use Qustodio. It was working great until DS12 managed to disable the VPN (he's not very computer-savvy so I was not expecting this) this morning while I was at work. I got a notification from Qustodio that the app was disabled, which is something I like about Qustodio -- I get notifications if things aren't happening the way they're supposed to be. Apparently there is a way to prevent the VPN from being disabled, so I'll look into that. I ended up locking the iPad from work and adding a message to him on the lock screen. If your DS is working with you on this, then you may not need to hide the app or ensure that he cannot disable the VPN. 

I like Qustodio pretty well and it is highly rated. I can configure it for times DS can be on the iPad as well as configure it to block/allow certain websites or categories of websites. I did read that NetNanny can block bad language though, and might have a look to see if that's a better fit. 

[freesia]

2 hours ago, Um_2_4 said:

Qustodio works on all devices except kindle fires. You can control time, websites, programs, etc.

I have 4 kids, so I have a subscription that covers 5 kids and up to 10 devices. I made the "5th kid" the school log in so when they want to do schoolwork on the computer they login on there and it is locked down to only school sites and programs to limit distractions.

We have Qustodio on my dd's kindle fire.

[Farrar]

I've had a couple of friends recommend Our Pact.

I always tell people to remember no matter which one you use, it's an imperfect tool. Kids are so savvy at breaking them. Which doesn't mean don't, just don't let it be your only strategy.

[Um_2_4]

3 hours ago, freesia said:

We have Qustodio on my dd's kindle fire.

Oh it will install, etc. But it can't really set time limits.

[freesia]

40 minutes ago, Um_2_4 said:

Oh it will install, etc. But it can't really set time limits.

Oh. We use it to see where dd goes online. And I know it shuts her off at 10 and she can't get on until 7. We use a router to limit time by turning on and off internet to devices, so I've never tried the overall time limit control. 

[Um_2_4]

1 hour ago, kand said:

I had a terrible time with Qustodio, but seem to be the be the only one. It  constantly blocked sites that they were supposed to be allowed on to, like Derek Owens math, and other things for their online classes, so that I always ended up having to disable it.  Tech-support was never able to figure out our problem.  I paid for two years subscription, which just expired, I never got any use out of it. (My DH is a network programmer, so this wasn’t for lack of computer savviness.  It’s possible that it just didn’t play well with our home firewall,)

I use OurPact for one of my kid’s cell phones that needs it, and it was a bit of a pain to set up, but it works quite well. It doesn’t do as much as Qustodio is supposed to, though. 

I had some issues, but it seems to be in the way the site is set up (as in coded). I just had to "ignore" those sites (it was like 2, and both were educational sites, explorationeducation (a science curriculum) and readingeggs). I would guess if ignoring it did not work, it was your firewall. 

[happypamama]

We had a lot of trouble getting Qustodio to do its job. Its web blocking was very good, but it wouldn’t kick kids out of programs when it was supposed to. One kid gets really distracted easily, so the time kid needs limits on Chrome, for instance, and it never kicked that kid out like it was supposed to. It had some other quirks too, and for as much money as it cost, I wanted better. I did like how it allowed me to lock kids into restricted mode on YouTube and safesearch on google.  

 

We have been using a combination of Windows Family Safety and Kasperksy SafeKids, depending on the kid, plus we have OpenDNS Family for the home WiFi. None of them are perfect, but they’re free or cheap.