Last week, we gave parents a list of potentially harmful apps that they should watch out for on their children’s smart devices. This week, the Dallas Police Department would like to continue its efforts in providing tips on social media apps and websites that are beneficial for parents monitoring their children’s social media activities.  Not only do these websites and apps help with monitoring social media, but they can also assist in locating your child. There is even an app that will give parents driving reports of their licensed teen drivers. Below are a few apps and websites that will help parents in doing just that. 

• The Circle: Smart Family Control Device: This website connects to the family wi-fi and allows parents to tailor age-appropriate content for everyone in the home. It also controls the time kids spend on their devices.
• Bark: This app is designed to monitor the texts and messages kids write and to detect words associated with bullying, sexting, signs of depression, or suicide; if these words are detected, a warning text is sent to the parent’s phone.
• Life360: This app allows parents to keep track of family members. It enables “geofencing” to alert when their child crosses certain predetermined boundaries and also encourages safe teen driving with periodic driving reports.
• Smartsocial.com: This website provides a wealth of information to parents about social media such as how kids use or misuse social media and how to recognize good or dangerous apps.
• FaceUp-Let’s Help: This app allows students to pair up with an adult at school that they feel they can trust. It also allows kids to quickly and anonymously report criminal behavior.
• Footprint Friday: This is a website parents can join at smartsocial.com. It sends parents an email alerting them of the ways their child appeared in social media from the previous week.
• http://www.crisischat.org: This is a national suicide prevention website that offers online emotional support, crisis intervention, and suicide prevention services. It specializes in helping adolescents with a wide variety of emotional problems.
• Parental Control & Kid Tracker: This app allows parents to manage their children’s screen time, track their child, and control which apps they have access to.
• http://www.mymobilewatchdog.com: This is a website parents can use to monitor every text, photo, and email their child sends and receives. Parents can block access to certain sites and can use it to geolocate their child’s physical location.

The department can not stress enough the importance of teaching kids to be good social media friends and to encourage their peers to do the same. Encourage your kids to make wise choices, never bully, and never be bullied. 

mg