Turning off Personal Hotspot on a chlid's device using Screentime

From what I can tell, it's not currently possible to turn off a child's Personal Hotspot on their device using the parental controls on the parent's phone (ie Screentime).


The problem is if a child has a non-Apple device, they can connect to their phone's Personal Hotspot even when Downtime is enabled. This means turning off WiFi in the home to restrict the usage of non-Apple devices no longer works.


One "solution" frequently offered is to disable "Mobile Data Changes" under Content & Privacy Restrictions. This setting has no effect on the Personal Hotspot.


Another "solution" is to contact the carrier / mobile provider and ask them to disable tethering. It seems some providers can and will do so. Others won't or can't. So, this isn't a universal solution and cannot be relied upon.


Others suggest "better" parenting by physically removing the phone from the child. That will always be an option with many children, but for some, it's not practical and imposing restrictions is better done in a more hands-off way.


The final advice I've found is to ask Apple to add this as a feature. From the other post on the topic, frustrated parents have been asking for this for several years and we are still waiting. Nevertheless, why not add your "+1" here: Feedback - iPhone - Apple


Should anyone know how to fix this, please let us know.

Posted on Dec 22, 2023 11:02 AM

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Posted on Apr 8, 2024 9:31 AM

To avoid diluting the message to Apple that many parents want this fixed, I'll periodically add a reply to keep this post alive to, hopefully, force it to the top of the many similar threads about the exact same thing.


I should have mentioned this in my original post, but please add a comment and up-vote this thread if you share the same concerns.



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Question marked as Best reply

Apr 8, 2024 9:31 AM in response to G-W

To avoid diluting the message to Apple that many parents want this fixed, I'll periodically add a reply to keep this post alive to, hopefully, force it to the top of the many similar threads about the exact same thing.


I should have mentioned this in my original post, but please add a comment and up-vote this thread if you share the same concerns.



May 18, 2024 9:09 AM in response to G-W

Apple can do so many amazing things with technology, but they can’t take simple steps to protect our kids. I don’t plan to buy any more Apple devices. I’ve had an incredibly stressful time limiting my son on his iPhone. My other kids will never have Apple products and won’t get smartphones until they’re at least 16.

Turning off Personal Hotspot on a chlid's device using Screentime

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