How to set up parental controls 2021: Phone, internet and more
Circle, Netgear, Gryphon and Bark: Parental control devices can greatly enhance protection, especially in and around your home network.
Whitson Gordon
Whitson Gordon
While many routers come with sub-par parental controls, there are exceptions. Netgear, for example, includes the Circle software on many of its Orbi mesh W-Fi systems, allowing you to subscribe to the same great parental controls without the need for a separate box. If you're planning on upgrading to a mesh Wi-Fi system for better coverage throughout your home, the Netgear Orbi RBK13 is one of the better and more affordable systems you can get today.
While not as well-known as Circle, Gryphon is a powerful alternative that doesn't require a monthly fee. Like Orbi, Gryphon is a mesh-capable router designed to replace your current Wi-Fi, with a host of parental control and anti-malware features built-in. It has many of the same time-limiting and web-filtering options as Circle, with slightly less fine-grained control — though you only pay for the device up front, no subscription required.
You can, however, pay $79 annually for more advanced security features: As far as parental controls, everything is included with the unit itself. You can grab their standard model or, if you don't need top-tier speeds, save a bit of money with the more affordable Gryphon Guardian units.
Bark works slightly differently from the other devices above. Through the software on their phone, Bark can not only block sites and limit screen time, but it can also monitor text messages and emails for signs of cyberbullying, online predators, risks of suicide and more. Parents can't read the text messages in full — there's still a layer of privacy between them and the child — but they will get notifications when Bark identifies any potential flags in the text, including common acronyms and online teen-speak.
The Bark Home is a hardware companion to the Bark software, performing your typical parental controls network-wide — similar to the other devices on this list — but if you like the extra features of the Bark software, this box makes a good companion. You can grab the box at a discount with a bundled subscription to the $99-per-year service. If you want to try the service before buying the hardware, you can buy the box separately.
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