Apple’s iPhone has some really good parental controls baked into iOS. If you’ve re-purposed an older iPhone for your kids, there’s a nifty feature you can turn on that will allow your child to browse the app store, but before they can download anything, a request can be sent to a parent’s phone. This will give you the opportunity to either approve or decline the request after you decide whether or not the app is appropriate for your child. I generally avoid any apps that are not age appropriate, but also, apps with social sharing features, apps that upload videos or pictures, chat apps, or apps with hooks into YouTube or external internet sites.
This particular feature works when you have a child account setup on their device. More on how to do that in another post, but check here if you want to learn more: Family Sharing and Apple ID for your child: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201084
Turn on Ask to Buy in Settings > [Your name] > Family Sharing
Once it’s turned on, your child will be required to “ask your permission” before downloading any new apps.
The approval request will take you to the app description where you can see the age rating, reviews, and generally understand what the app is used for. If you approve, your child will be allowed to download the app.
Now you can keep an eye on downloads, teach responsibility, and keep that privacy and security conversation going.
