In this article, we explore the key features of Google’s Family Link. We also explain how to set up this parental control app and access the most important features.
Google Family Link is a parental control app. Parents can use this app to view their children’s smartphone activities. They can even set screen time limits and password locks on specific apps. Parents have complete oversight of all apps their children use or download. Here’s the website version of the app – https://families.google.com/families/; check it out.
Children aged 13 or lower can’t create their own Google accounts unless it’s supervised. Parents need to set up their accounts using this app. Family Link can, of course, be used for children above the age of 13. It can give parents varying degrees of control over their children’s cellular activities –
• Parents can see what apps their children use.
• What games their children play (including control over all in-game purchases)
• The overall screen-time children receive
• The websites they can open through the browser
Google also publishes streamlined reports of kids’ app usage. It’s part of Android’s Digital Wellbeing mandate. The Family Link for children and teens app currently only a rating of 1.4 stars on the Play Store. Don’t worry – that’s not because the app is dysfunctional. It’s actually quite efficient. That’s why children seem to hate it and give poor ratings and reviews.
Setting up a child’s account is quite straightforward. Parents can use one phone to create two profiles or set different profiles on different devices. However, not all devices support the Google Family Link app –
• Family Link runs on all Android devices, version 4.4 (or higher). It also runs on iPhones with iOS 9 or higher.
• Devices running Android versions 4.4, 5.0, or 6.0 are able to run the app. But, the app runs best on Android phones running version 7.0 (or higher). Versions that are not up to date don’t support the latest features.
• The Family Link app also runs on Chromebooks, running Chrome OS version 71 (or higher).
Check the version of Android/iOS your smartphone is currently running. Go to the Settings section, click on the “About Phone” or “About Tablet” option, and check the version of OS running on your smartphone.
The Google Family Link app is essentially designed for two groups of people – children under the age of 13 and teens older than 13. Children under the age of 13, by default, have supervised accounts and can’t use too many Google apps or services. It’s not obligatory for parents to supervise the accounts of teens older than 13. But parents can still connect their teenagers’ accounts and oversee their cellular activities via the app. In both versions, parents can set as many or as few restrictions as they want.
Parents should first download the Family Link app on their Android or iPhone device. Children will also need to download the app on their phones to initiate the account-linking process. Children who don’t have Google accounts (Gmail accounts) can create supervised accounts using the Family Link app.
The Family Link will walk parents through the linking process once the children’s accounts are active. After completing the linking process, children can sign in to their smartphones with the new, supervised accounts. Parents can start using the linked accounts to set up digital restrictions for their children.
How to Block/Unblock Apps Via Family Link?
• Open the Google Family Link App.
• Select your child’s profile.
• You’ll see a card mentioning “Apps Installed.”
• Click “more” to see all the names of the apps on your child’s device.
• Select the apps you want to block or unblock.
• Select one of the “Allow app on” or “Allow app off” options.
You can also block/unblock apps from the app’s website version.
• Go to the Family Link website.
• Select your child’s profile.
• Click on the Android apps option.
• Turn the apps on/off.
The Family Link app DOES NOT allow parents to block all inappropriate content on their children’s phones. Only some apps have specific, child-safe filtering options. Search, and Chrome both have specific filtering options that can be accessed via Family Link. YouTube also offers a “restricted mode.”
This optional setting filters out all content that are rated ‘mature’ or flagged as ‘inappropriate’. This mode uses automated filtering tools. These tools assess the video’s title, language, metadata, etc., to deem it appropriate or inappropriate for children. The types of content blocked in YouTube’s restricted mode include –
• Inflammatory or slanderous content directed towards individuals or groups.
• Profane and adult language.
• Videos containing racial slurs, swear words, etc.
• Depictions of violence, political conflicts, terrorism, war, crime, etc.
• Descriptions of violence, disturbing news reports, crime-related videos, etc.
• Sexual content (depictions or discussions). • Drug, alcohol, or tobacco use (or discussion).
Unfortunately, these filters don’t work perfectly well. Many users have managed to access content from these purportedly blocked categories while using YouTube’s restricted mode. This mode is also not customizable. For instance, if you don’t want your child to view toy reviews that feature manipulative ads, you can’t specifically set up such a filter.
The best alternative is to only allow children access to YouTube Kids, a separate YouTube app which only features children-friendly content. YouTube employs human moderators who create approved playlists that only contain educational and kid-friendly content.
You can only set limits for your child’s screen time only on Android devices (or Chromebooks).
• Open the Family Link app.
• Select your child’s profile.
• Look for a card titled “Daily Limit”.
• Tap on the “Daily Limit” card and select ‘set up’ (you’ll see another option titled ‘edit limits’ which will come in handy later).
• The app will guide you through the procedure of setting daily screen time limits.
If you set a daily limit of four hours – all of your child’s Android devices or Chromebooks will be locked after four hours. Parents can also use the Family Link app to block internet connections on their children’s devices at any time. Here’s what happens once you start setting daily screen time limits for your children –
• Your children will get notifications when the screen time is first set by the parent (only Android phones).
• Children also receive notifications right before their phones are locked for the day.
• Once the phone is locked and the screen time controls are on, children can’t – unlock the device, use any app, or view notifications.
• They can answer phone calls, but to make phone calls, they’ll need to use the Emergency mode (only available on Android phones).
On phones that run the latest Android versions (Nougat or newer), parents can even set specific time limits on select apps. In the “Today’s Activity” section of the app, select the “Set Limits” option. Choose the apps/games you want to limit and set specific daily time limits. System apps or third-party apps can’t be restricted – the app time limit functionality only works on Play Store apps.
Recently, Google has updated the app’s parental control system to make it more pandemic-friendly. Parents can now specifically “Always Allow” all educational or remote learning apps. Those must-access apps are also not counted when the app calculates your child’s overall screen time every month.
Assess how much time your child spends on each app. Family Link tracks usage time right from when each app is opened and displayed on the screen. It doesn’t count apps running in the background as ‘active.’
• Open the Family Link app.
• Select your child’s profile and enter the “App Activity” section.
• Select “Set Up” and click on the “Turn on App Activity” option.
After a few hours, your child’s app activity details will be displayed in the “App Activity” section.
Parents can even make children require their approval every time they download a new app from the play store.
• Open the Play Store app on an Android phone/tablet and enter the “Menu” section (on the left of the screen)
• Click on your account and select the “Family” option.
• You’ll see a “Manage Family Members” section where all linked accounts will be displayed.
• Click the option that displays your child’s Family Link account.
• Tap the “purchase approvals” option.
• Set appropriate restrictions. You can restrict all downloads, only paid downloads, or only in-app purchases.
This is a question many parents have – can children start customizing the Family Link account as per their wishes? No, it’s not easy, especially if you’ve set up strong passwords. However, to be extra sure – here’s what you should do to prevent children from changing their own app restrictions and permissions –
• Open the Family Link app, select your child’s profile, and find an option called “Device Card.”
• In this section, tap “View Settings;” a “App Permissions” option will pop up – click on it.
• Select “Only Parents” in the app permissions section.
To lock/unlock your child’s Android device, open the Family Link app, and select your child’s profile. You’ll see two options in bold – Lock now or Unlock. Select either to lock/unlock your child’s phone.
In case a child’s phone isn’t connected to the Internet, parents can use parent access codes to lock/unlock their children’s Android devices. To track your child’s location – find a card titled “Location” (you’ll see this card once you click on your child’s profile on the app. Select Set Up and turn on location tracking.
In addition to using Google Family Link, parents can also consider setting up some extra safety layers for their children. Parents should strongly consider using monitoring tools that can also assess the content on their kids’ phones – from text messages to social media conversations. MMGuardian is one of the most reliable parental control apps in this aspect. It’s compatible with Android and iOS. With this app, parents can do pretty much everything they do on Google Family Link and more. For example, MMGuardian’s message-tracking feature enables parents to know exactly who their children are talking to and what they’re talking about at all times, even if conversations are deleted.
The MMGuardian app also utilizes AI technology to scan messages and send parents notifications if it detects any concerning content related to categories such as predators, suicide, bullying, inappropriate pictures, and much more.
The impressive monitoring capabilities combined with a robust set of parental controls makes MMGuardian the best app for parents who want maximum control and safety for their child.
What is Google Family Link?
Google Family Link is a parental control app. Parents can use this app to view their children’s smartphone activities. They can even set screen time limits and password locks on specific apps. Parents have complete oversight of all apps their children use or download. Here’s the website version of the app – https://families.google.com/families/; check it out.
Children aged 13 or lower can’t create their own Google accounts unless it’s supervised. Parents need to set up their accounts using this app. Family Link can, of course, be used for children above the age of 13. It can give parents varying degrees of control over their children’s cellular activities –
• Parents can see what apps their children use.
• What games their children play (including control over all in-game purchases)
• The overall screen-time children receive
• The websites they can open through the browser
Google also publishes streamlined reports of kids’ app usage. It’s part of Android’s Digital Wellbeing mandate. The Family Link for children and teens app currently only a rating of 1.4 stars on the Play Store. Don’t worry – that’s not because the app is dysfunctional. It’s actually quite efficient. That’s why children seem to hate it and give poor ratings and reviews.
Using Google Family Link – The Requirements
Setting up a child’s account is quite straightforward. Parents can use one phone to create two profiles or set different profiles on different devices. However, not all devices support the Google Family Link app –
• Family Link runs on all Android devices, version 4.4 (or higher). It also runs on iPhones with iOS 9 or higher.
• Devices running Android versions 4.4, 5.0, or 6.0 are able to run the app. But, the app runs best on Android phones running version 7.0 (or higher). Versions that are not up to date don’t support the latest features.
• The Family Link app also runs on Chromebooks, running Chrome OS version 71 (or higher).
Check the version of Android/iOS your smartphone is currently running. Go to the Settings section, click on the “About Phone” or “About Tablet” option, and check the version of OS running on your smartphone.
Who is the Google Family Link App For?
The Google Family Link app is essentially designed for two groups of people – children under the age of 13 and teens older than 13. Children under the age of 13, by default, have supervised accounts and can’t use too many Google apps or services. It’s not obligatory for parents to supervise the accounts of teens older than 13. But parents can still connect their teenagers’ accounts and oversee their cellular activities via the app. In both versions, parents can set as many or as few restrictions as they want.
How to Set Up the Google Family Link App on My Smartphone?
Parents should first download the Family Link app on their Android or iPhone device. Children will also need to download the app on their phones to initiate the account-linking process. Children who don’t have Google accounts (Gmail accounts) can create supervised accounts using the Family Link app.
The Family Link will walk parents through the linking process once the children’s accounts are active. After completing the linking process, children can sign in to their smartphones with the new, supervised accounts. Parents can start using the linked accounts to set up digital restrictions for their children.
How to Block/Unblock Apps Via Family Link?
• Open the Google Family Link App.
• Select your child’s profile.
• You’ll see a card mentioning “Apps Installed.”
• Click “more” to see all the names of the apps on your child’s device.
• Select the apps you want to block or unblock.
• Select one of the “Allow app on” or “Allow app off” options.
You can also block/unblock apps from the app’s website version.
• Go to the Family Link website.
• Select your child’s profile.
• Click on the Android apps option.
• Turn the apps on/off.
How to Block Inappropriate Content on the Google Family Link App?
The Family Link app DOES NOT allow parents to block all inappropriate content on their children’s phones. Only some apps have specific, child-safe filtering options. Search, and Chrome both have specific filtering options that can be accessed via Family Link. YouTube also offers a “restricted mode.”
This optional setting filters out all content that are rated ‘mature’ or flagged as ‘inappropriate’. This mode uses automated filtering tools. These tools assess the video’s title, language, metadata, etc., to deem it appropriate or inappropriate for children. The types of content blocked in YouTube’s restricted mode include –
• Inflammatory or slanderous content directed towards individuals or groups.
• Profane and adult language.
• Videos containing racial slurs, swear words, etc.
• Depictions of violence, political conflicts, terrorism, war, crime, etc.
• Descriptions of violence, disturbing news reports, crime-related videos, etc.
• Sexual content (depictions or discussions). • Drug, alcohol, or tobacco use (or discussion).
Unfortunately, these filters don’t work perfectly well. Many users have managed to access content from these purportedly blocked categories while using YouTube’s restricted mode. This mode is also not customizable. For instance, if you don’t want your child to view toy reviews that feature manipulative ads, you can’t specifically set up such a filter.
The best alternative is to only allow children access to YouTube Kids, a separate YouTube app which only features children-friendly content. YouTube employs human moderators who create approved playlists that only contain educational and kid-friendly content.
How to Oversee a Child’s Screen Time via Family Link?
You can only set limits for your child’s screen time only on Android devices (or Chromebooks).
• Open the Family Link app.
• Select your child’s profile.
• Look for a card titled “Daily Limit”.
• Tap on the “Daily Limit” card and select ‘set up’ (you’ll see another option titled ‘edit limits’ which will come in handy later).
• The app will guide you through the procedure of setting daily screen time limits.
If you set a daily limit of four hours – all of your child’s Android devices or Chromebooks will be locked after four hours. Parents can also use the Family Link app to block internet connections on their children’s devices at any time. Here’s what happens once you start setting daily screen time limits for your children –
• Your children will get notifications when the screen time is first set by the parent (only Android phones).
• Children also receive notifications right before their phones are locked for the day.
• Once the phone is locked and the screen time controls are on, children can’t – unlock the device, use any app, or view notifications.
• They can answer phone calls, but to make phone calls, they’ll need to use the Emergency mode (only available on Android phones).
On phones that run the latest Android versions (Nougat or newer), parents can even set specific time limits on select apps. In the “Today’s Activity” section of the app, select the “Set Limits” option. Choose the apps/games you want to limit and set specific daily time limits. System apps or third-party apps can’t be restricted – the app time limit functionality only works on Play Store apps.
Recently, Google has updated the app’s parental control system to make it more pandemic-friendly. Parents can now specifically “Always Allow” all educational or remote learning apps. Those must-access apps are also not counted when the app calculates your child’s overall screen time every month.
How to View Your Child’s App Activities on Family Link?
Assess how much time your child spends on each app. Family Link tracks usage time right from when each app is opened and displayed on the screen. It doesn’t count apps running in the background as ‘active.’
• Open the Family Link app.
• Select your child’s profile and enter the “App Activity” section.
• Select “Set Up” and click on the “Turn on App Activity” option.
After a few hours, your child’s app activity details will be displayed in the “App Activity” section.
Parents can even make children require their approval every time they download a new app from the play store.
• Open the Play Store app on an Android phone/tablet and enter the “Menu” section (on the left of the screen)
• Click on your account and select the “Family” option.
• You’ll see a “Manage Family Members” section where all linked accounts will be displayed.
• Click the option that displays your child’s Family Link account.
• Tap the “purchase approvals” option.
• Set appropriate restrictions. You can restrict all downloads, only paid downloads, or only in-app purchases.
How to Prevent Children from Altering their Own App Restrictions?
This is a question many parents have – can children start customizing the Family Link account as per their wishes? No, it’s not easy, especially if you’ve set up strong passwords. However, to be extra sure – here’s what you should do to prevent children from changing their own app restrictions and permissions –
• Open the Family Link app, select your child’s profile, and find an option called “Device Card.”
• In this section, tap “View Settings;” a “App Permissions” option will pop up – click on it.
• Select “Only Parents” in the app permissions section.
How to Lock, Unlock, and Locate Your Child’s Device?
To lock/unlock your child’s Android device, open the Family Link app, and select your child’s profile. You’ll see two options in bold – Lock now or Unlock. Select either to lock/unlock your child’s phone.
In case a child’s phone isn’t connected to the Internet, parents can use parent access codes to lock/unlock their children’s Android devices. To track your child’s location – find a card titled “Location” (you’ll see this card once you click on your child’s profile on the app. Select Set Up and turn on location tracking.
In addition to using Google Family Link, parents can also consider setting up some extra safety layers for their children. Parents should strongly consider using monitoring tools that can also assess the content on their kids’ phones – from text messages to social media conversations. MMGuardian is one of the most reliable parental control apps in this aspect. It’s compatible with Android and iOS. With this app, parents can do pretty much everything they do on Google Family Link and more. For example, MMGuardian’s message-tracking feature enables parents to know exactly who their children are talking to and what they’re talking about at all times, even if conversations are deleted.
The MMGuardian app also utilizes AI technology to scan messages and send parents notifications if it detects any concerning content related to categories such as predators, suicide, bullying, inappropriate pictures, and much more.
The impressive monitoring capabilities combined with a robust set of parental controls makes MMGuardian the best app for parents who want maximum control and safety for their child.
