Topic guides
The cross-cutting topics — network, AI, apps teens hide, privacy audits, family logistics.
Topic guides cover the things that are not about one device: the home network, AI chatbots, school-issued equipment, privacy audits, family plans and the apps teenagers keep out of view. They are here because the useful answer often has nothing to do with which phone your child owns. If you want the single change that affects every device in the house at once, start with the router and DNS guide.
Topic guides
Router & DNS filtering
One setting protects every device in the house.
Open guide → TOPICCarrier controls: Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T
Lock the number and SIM, block phone-bill purchases, filter cellular.
Open guide → TOPICKid-safe phones: Gabb, Pinwheel, Bark, Troomi
What each locks down, monthly cost, network, and how to choose.
Open guide → TOPICTeen payment apps: Apple Cash, Venmo, Cash App
Who they can pay, what you see, and the sextortion angle.
Open guide → TOPICAI chatbot safety
Character.AI, Replika, My AI, ChatGPT — the real risks.
Open guide → TOPICSextortion: prepare & respond
The pattern, the conversation, the response.
Open guide → TOPICSchool-issued devices
What you can and can’t control on school Chromebooks.
Open guide → TOPICFortnite & Minecraft safety
Voice chat, V-Bucks scams, Realms, grooming patterns.
Open guide → TOPICStranger-chat apps teens hide
Yubo, Wizz, Hoop, Monkey — and how to spot them.
Open guide → TOPICSmart TV & streaming
Kid profiles, platform PINs, the profile-switch problem.
Open guide → TOPICVR headsets
Meta Quest, PS VR2, Vision Pro, VRChat risks.
Open guide → TOPICIn-app purchase & gift-card scams
Robux, V-Bucks, gift-card fraud. Prevention and recovery.
Open guide → TOPICBrowser controls
SafeSearch, Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge — and DNS fallback.
Open guide → TOPICiMessage & SMS safety
Communication Safety, unknown sender filtering, scam patterns.
Open guide → TOPICFirst phone transition
The setup to do before the phone is unwrapped.
Open guide → TOPICPrivacy audit walkthrough
Quarterly 20-minute routine for kids’ accounts.
Open guide → TOPICNeurodivergent kids & tech
Structure, transitions, mental-health-first approaches.
Open guide → TOPICBlended families & shared custody
Aligning tech rules across two households.
Open guide → TOPICPassword managers for families
Bitwarden, 1Password, Apple, Google — setup and per-kid vaults.
Open guide → TOPICTwo-factor authentication
The single biggest defense against account theft.
Open guide → TOPICFamily-plan comparison
Apple vs Google vs Microsoft vs Amazon.
Open guide → TOPICKid email setup
Supervised Gmail, iCloud Mail, Outlook family.
Open guide → TOPICADHD kids & tech
Dopamine-seeking, time blindness, transition difficulty.
Open guide → TOPICAutism & tech
Why many autistic kids thrive online, and the risks to watch.
Open guide → TOPICAnxiety, depression & tech
Sleep, feeds, conversations, and the signs to watch.
Open guide →How the topic guides are organised
Topic guides are the ones that are not about a single device. They fall into four rough groups: things you set once for the whole house (router and DNS filtering, password managers, two-factor authentication); things that follow a child onto every device they touch (AI chatbots, stranger-chat apps, sextortion, purchase scams); family logistics (plans, kid email, the first phone, shared custody); and guides written for a specific kid rather than a specific product (ADHD, autism, anxiety and depression).
If you only read one, read the router and DNS guide. It is the only setting on this page that covers every device in the house at once, including the ones you have not thought about.
When parental controls change
The controls behind this change more often than the advice does. Roughly monthly we send new guides, changes to controls like these, and scams worth knowing about.
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