Today, children get their first smartphone almost in kindergarten, and this is justified from a security point of view – the child is always in touch with you. However, parents should not forget that a smartphone opens the door to your child into the immense depths of the Internet, which will teach a child much worse than yard hooligans. While it is struggling to block everything bad on the Web, recommendations on how to make a child’s gadget safe for a child will come in handy. The use of phone spy app is important now.
Sharing a smartphone with a child: protecting from adult content
You will not surprise modern children with a touch screen or wireless internet. They seem to be born with this knowledge, and from an early age, they begin to pull their pens to their parent gadgets. So that the child does not format your smartphone or tablet, doesn’t buy all the games in the application store and accidentally stumbles on non-child content, you need to limit the ability of the child to control the operating system of the device. Fortunately, there are a great many ways to protect against excessive curiosity.
On Android tablets, starting with version 4.3, it is possible to create an additional account with restrictions for selected applications. On smartphones, profiles with restrictions work only in versions of Android 4.3 and 4.4. To enable an account, go to the settings, find the “Users” tab, then click “Add User” and select “Limited Profile”. In this profile, the child will only have access to applications that you manually add to the list of allowed ones. In a limited profile, the child can independently customize the appearance of the desktop, which will not affect the desktop of the main user. The data for each application for each account is stored separately, so you and your child can play the same games on the same device, but each will have its own achievements. At the same time, it is important to reliably protect access to the administrator profile. It’s best to use not a graphic key, but a PIN or password.
Smartphone for a child: protection and security settings
However, in most Android devices in an additional account, you can only disable the possibility of calls. If this is not enough, install a children’s launcher. This is a kind of protected sandbox with bright wallpapers, funny icons and a strictly defined set of game and developmental offers. There are a lot of baby shells on Google Play.
We chose Kid’s Shell. With Kid’s Shell, access to files, phone book and messages will be closed, so you cannot be afraid that the child inadvertently ditch valuable information. In this launcher, you can configure almost everything: select available applications, block access to the Network and the app store, set a time limit during which a child can use a tablet or smartphone, as well as the time period when the device is available for children’s use.
By the way, access to the Internet is not necessary to turn off, because there are a lot of very useful entertainment and educational sites. Just set access to them not through the browser, but through the application. Within the “sandbox”, you can give your child the right to make calls to selected numbers from the address book. True, for this you will need to buy the Pro version.