{"id":51127,"date":"2015-02-06T00:01:11","date_gmt":"2015-02-06T08:01:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cookiesandclogs.com\/?p=51127"},"modified":"2017-10-09T13:16:55","modified_gmt":"2017-10-09T20:16:55","slug":"curbi-parental-controls-for-ios","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cookiesandclogs.com\/curbi-parental-controls-for-ios\/","title":{"rendered":"Parental Controls for iOS + Remote Internet Control w\/ Curbi"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Once upon a time, it was easier to keep an\u00a0eye on what our kids were doing. If televisions and computers were kept in the living room, there was less temptation to look at “naughty things” since everyone\u00a0passing by could see. However, the insurgence of personal mobile devices has changed all of that. Parental controls for iOS and other devices is a must these days.<\/p>\n
Kids can now look at and send photos and videos in private, without anyone being the wiser. Snapchat is very popular among teens for that very reason. They can exchange media with others and it disappears after being viewed. That means no logs for parents to check for the mental, emotional, moral, and physical health of their children. Then there’s tumblr and Youtube, both of which make it all to easy to stumble onto undesirable territory. Normal parental controls just can’t seem to cut it any more\u00a0as\u00a0some have found ways of getting around those.<\/p>\n
Now there is an iOS app which puts the power back in your hands when it comes to the iPhones, iPads, and iPods in your house. Curbi<\/a> is a paid monthly service that was created with this generation of kids in mind. Instead of just restricting certain web site domains, all internet traffic is filtered through the Curbi servers. No amount of browsers or looping tricks will allow kids to bypass these servers to get to\u00a0blocked sites.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n You can also remotely shut off internet access on your kids’ devices right from your smartphone.To use the app and control devices remotely, you do need to give a couple permissions but those won’t impact your phone’s security. I checked with Frans, my tech guru, just to be sure. The camera can be blocked while they’re at home alone in their room so avoid\u00a0compromising photos from being\u00a0taken and shared.<\/p>\n With Munchkin being fourteen, we’ve already seen our share of issues to address. Most have been very innocent but the hardest part has been\u00a0controlling how often\u00a0she uses her mobile devices. Curbi allows you to set “rules” with specific times to block\u00a0internet usage. I set up a Bedtime Rule so she can’t go online from 9:00pm to 7:00am. This has had immediate results as she doesn’t get “distracted” from getting ready for sleep any more. Well, at least not as much.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Initial set-up is very simple but you do need to wrangle your kids’ devices for a few minutes. After signing up for a Curbi\u00a0account, go to http:\/\/www.curbi.com\/enrol<\/a> (one “l” or two, doesn’t matter) on your child’s device. Put in your login information and hand the device back. Now you can set up everything from your smartphone using the app or online site.\u00a0What if your child needs their iPhone or iPad to use during school? You can set up a school mode as well.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nCurbi \u2013 Parental Controls iOS App for iPhones, iPads, and iPads<\/h3>\n