Smartphones, social media, and many cell phone apps make parenting an extra difficult task these days. Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram were once apps you had to worry about your kids using inappropriately, but they pale in comparison to some of the newer apps available to children on their smartphones. Regularly checking your children’s cell phone and following this parenting advice on watching out for dangerous apps can help keep your children safe on their phones.
Parenting Tip: Monitor your children’s smartphones and watch out for these dangerous new apps.
You might be worried about checking your kids’ phones because you don’t want them to think you’re being nosy. It’s important to inform your children aware you are the one in charge of the phones, and you are checking them for their safety and not just to be a snoop. Your job is to parent them, not a friend. You should also set up their phones so your approval is required before they can download new apps. There are too many risky apps and ways for kids to be lured into something dangerous to not monitor their phones these days. Cupid has some parenting tips when it comes to some of the apps you need to be on the lookout for:
1. Dating apps in disguise: You would never be okay with your children using Tinder or Bumblebee, but what you may not realize is there are numerous new apps made for hooking up which are disguised as something innocent. These apps encourage your children to meet up with their matches. Anyone can pose as a teenager online, so you never really know who the other person is they are agreeing to meet when it comes to online hookups. The Yubo app, Hot or Not, and the HOLLA app are all designed to help teens hook up with other teens or people.
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2. Anonymous ranking apps:Â As a parent, you want to teach your child to be kind and not to be a bully. There are apps out there built around ranking people based on their looks. These apps promote negative comments. Some of these apps also allow you to comment anonymously so your cruel or inappropriate comments are not linked to your name. If children can access these apps then so can adults, so you never know who is judging your children’s photos. Some of these apps include Lipsi, Tellonym, and the BIGO LIVE app.
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3. Apps disguised to hide content:Â Nobody wants to think their kids would hide things from them, but in reality, they will. There are apps out there disguised as something innocent which are specifically designed to help your kids hide things on their smartphones. Some of these include the Calculator app, the Locker. This app is especially sneaky because it looks just like an ordinary calculator, but it stores hidden photos, allowing teens to share nudes without parents finding them because they don’t know to check this app.
Smartphones can be great tools, allowing you to keep up with your kids as long as they are monitored properly to keep children from downloading apps which could lead them into dangerous situations. Let us know your thoughts about smartphone safety for your children in the comments below.
