(ThyBlackMan.com) Being a parent in our time is quite different than being a parent even 20 years ago. Of course, basic things stay the same: you love your kids, you raise them kind, you provide them with education, etc. However, with all the technologies and all the sequential things, parents have both: new problems to take care of and new ways to solve different issues. Let’s talk about mobile parental controls for a little bit. Such apps started to appear when parents began to notice that smartphones had become not only the way to call each other, but so many other things, often quite negative.
So, why do people use parental controls? Here are the most common advantages:
- Keeping track of kids’ location. As you know, the majority of parental controls track a phone’s location via GPS and notifies parents about any alterations in real time. It means that parents can always know their children are at
school, at home, at a sports’ practice, etc. Usually you can set particular geo-fences and get notified when kids cross them. More parents began using parental controls because of the frequent number of kidnapping cases out there. The statistics say that around 2,300 kids are missing every day in the US. That disturbing number makes parents be highly alarmed and take all the safety measures they can including parental apps. - Monitoring texts and calls. Parents have the right to know whom their kids talk to and whom they text. Thus, they believe they can prevent certain troubles.
- Alarm button. The majority of parental controls have an alarm button that kids can use when in trouble. Whether they are bullied at school, are followed by strangers, get lost or feel sick, they can press the button and their parents get the notification immediately.
- Control the Internet usage. This reason is the most recent one. First of all, parents want to block or limit sites and apps that they believe negatively affect their kids. It can include social networks, entertaining sites, different games or websites with explicit content. Second of all, parents want to make sure their children won’t fall for any online scams. Third of all, they want to protect their kids from online predators. And finally, they want to make sure there is no cyberbullying, sexting or other negative things the Internet may bring.
There are some more advantages of using such apps, but these were the most common ones. As with anything in this world, there are also some disadvantages. Here are the basic ones.
- Violation of privacy. As a parent, you have the right to take your kids phone and see what’s there at any time. However, teenagers, for instance, demand some privacy and find it wrong if they parents want to know about their online life. It can be especially difficult if parents install such an app without their kids knowing and the kids then find out about it. Pumpic Parental Monitoring reports that there have been numerous cases of kids and teens trying to turn off or delete control apps. So, if you choose to use such software, it is better to talk to your kids about it first and explain why you do this.
- Access to the Internet. Many functions of control apps just won’t work if there is no Internet access. It can often be a disadvantage.
- Curiosity. There have been cases when parents get carried away with monitoring their kids’ phones and just started reading everything no matter how private that information was. If your daughter, for example, shares her feelings about some boy with her best friend, it is not the information parents should see. So, there is always a temptation to sneak on your kids.
Pew Research Center found out that around 50% of parents of teens who use the Internet have tried parental controls for different purposes. It means that a big number of parents are really concerned about their kids’ online activities and want to be informed about them. Despite of disadvantages, more and more parents choose to keep it safe and to monitor their children’s devices. They say that they would rather have their kids angry at that than face numerous problems that may occur.
If you have a few minutes, we recommend checking out this newly published guide: TechImperatives.com Review: Best GPS Trackers for Kids. Parents can now feel at ease knowing exactly where their children are at all times.
Staff Writer; Greg Poole