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Hoping the community can help me. I need to be able to monitor my child's text messages. With technologies available today, I expected my carrier Verizon to offer this service - but they do not. I've looked at a couple apps, but I need to be inconspicuous. Does anyone have any suggestions? Has anyone used the KidGuard app/ software? Thanks.
iPhone 6 Plus, iOS 12
You cannot monitor your child's text messages except by viewing them on his or her phone. Verizon cannot offer the service, because no carrier can read the messages that they handle. Apple cannot either, for the same reason. There are no legitimate apps that can do it either. And what messages would you like to monitor? SMS/MMS? Whatsapp? Facebook Messenger? Signal? Google Duo?, Telegram? Instagram? pinterest? The only possible way is to install spyware on the phone, but this requires jailbreaking it, which puts your child at much greater risk from hackers and predators than anything they might communicate via texts. I did a quick check of Kidguard, and it has a lot of complaints. Plus the fact that kidguard gives the app provider complete access to your kid. How far are you willing to trust them?
There are a couple of roundabout ways. One is to back up the phone every day, then get a backup extractor program that can let you view the contents of the backup. Another is to get another iPhone solely for the purpose of monitoring, that you would not use for anything else. Log it in to the same Apple ID as the child's phone, then enable text message syncing. This will replicate the messages on the monitoring phone. But don't make it your phone, because your child can then spy on you. But this won't help with the other messaging apps. You can block installing apps, which will force your child to use only the built in messaging to deal with that possibility.
You cannot monitor your child's text messages except by viewing them on his or her phone. Verizon cannot offer the service, because no carrier can read the messages that they handle. Apple cannot either, for the same reason. There are no legitimate apps that can do it either. And what messages would you like to monitor? SMS/MMS? Whatsapp? Facebook Messenger? Signal? Google Duo?, Telegram? Instagram? pinterest? The only possible way is to install spyware on the phone, but this requires jailbreaking it, which puts your child at much greater risk from hackers and predators than anything they might communicate via texts. I did a quick check of Kidguard, and it has a lot of complaints. Plus the fact that kidguard gives the app provider complete access to your kid. How far are you willing to trust them?
There are a couple of roundabout ways. One is to back up the phone every day, then get a backup extractor program that can let you view the contents of the backup. Another is to get another iPhone solely for the purpose of monitoring, that you would not use for anything else. Log it in to the same Apple ID as the child's phone, then enable text message syncing. This will replicate the messages on the monitoring phone. But don't make it your phone, because your child can then spy on you. But this won't help with the other messaging apps. You can block installing apps, which will force your child to use only the built in messaging to deal with that possibility.
adding the child's apple ID email address to the parents' messaging settings.
Even if this still existed, the child can easily lock the parent out by changing their password or adding Apple's 2 Factor Authentication.
Apple is fanatical about privacy and security. In their mind, each device owner deserves the strongest possible security.
mahlman43 wrote:
I really can't believe that Apple doesn't have a product that enables a parent to have two messaging accounts on a single phone. It looks like this capability was offered years ago (in reviewing the other conversations in the community) by adding the child's apple ID email address to the parents' messaging settings. Does anyone know why this capability has been removed?
The capability was never there, so it was never removed. If you share an Apple ID with your child you can see their texts, but they can see yours also. That's the tradeoff. And that only works for iMessage and SMS. If your child chooses to use whatsapp, signal, telegram, Facebook messenger, Symphony, Google Duo, etc, there's no way you can monitor them.
I really can't believe that Apple doesn't have a product that enables a parent to have two messaging accounts on a single phone. It looks like this capability was offered years ago (in reviewing the other conversations in the community) by adding the child's apple ID email address to the parents' messaging settings. Does anyone know why this capability has been removed?
In other similar conversation, is there a way to limit the child's contact ability in texting? Like only certain individuals can be texted from a certain phone or message account?
monitor child's text messages
