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We live surrounded by screens. They’re part of our daily lives — and our children’s too. Digital content is increasingly attractive, accessible, and available, but it’s important to consume it with critical thinking, awareness, and moderation — something we must also teach kids from an early age.

The way children use screens raises many legitimate questions for families: What are they doing online? How can we manage their screen time and limit potentially risky activities?
There are parental control tools designed to help families. But sometimes, kids learn how to get around them. That’s why open dialogue and early education are key.

Many families, says Montse Jiménez, teacher and co-author of Madres y padres influencers, “feel lost and tend to skip essential steps.” She explains that the process should follow four stages chronologically: control, supervision, guidance, and finally, autonomy. But “unfortunately, many parents start at the end, granting autonomy too early,” she notes.

Excessive or unregulated screen use can affect early brain development, harm physical health, and have consequences for emotional well-being. That’s why raising our children in a screen-filled world requires tools, limits, and a lot of awareness. In this context, parental controls can be helpful, but they’re not foolproof.

Here’s a look at five of the most popular parental control apps:

This Google app offers tools to set digital rules: discover how your child uses their device, track their location, and manage content filters as well as privacy and safety settings. You can control which apps they use, define screen time limits, block apps, or require approval before downloading new ones.

This app lets you track the device’s location and usage habits while balancing screen time. You can receive alerts about concerning behavior and block harmful content, apps, or websites. Settings can be customized according to the child’s age.

This app allows you to set daily screen time schedules and “disconnection” periods. It encourages positive habits by rewarding completed tasks with extra screen time. You can approve or deny new app downloads, monitor app usage, view browsing history, block categories or websites, and access real-time location data, even receive alerts when your child arrives or leaves specific places.

Kids Place isn’t a traditional parental control app, it’s a child-friendly interface that creates a safe environment where kids can only access approved apps and functions. While it offers a free version, many advanced features require a subscription. Free features include app restrictions, time limits, and up to two user profiles. Parents can also track the child’s live location and receive alerts when geographic limits are crossed.

This app lets you block inappropriate apps with content filters, set usage limits for each app or game, and collect information about installed apps, contacts, messages, and browsing activity. It can also track calls and messages, locate the device via GPS, and send automatic alerts in potentially dangerous situations.

“In the digital world, where there’s a rule, there’s a loophole,” explains Miquel Àngel Prats Fernández, educational psychologist and author of Vivir en digital. Cómo educamos para el mundo de hoy. “Many kids today know how to bypass protections easily. And honestly, prohibiting something often makes them want it even more.”

So while parental controls can be useful in some cases, they’re not perfect, and not always positive.

Many parental controls can be disabled if a child performs a factory reset on the device, especially if there’s no password protecting system settings. To prevent this, enable administrative locks that block resets without your approval.

VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) allow users to change their device’s location. This lets children bypass geographic or web-content filters, accessing restricted material or blocked sites. Check installed apps regularly and configure parental control settings to prevent the installation of new apps without approval.

When kids can’t bypass controls on their own devices, they may simply use a friend’s, cousin’s, or even a school device, gaining access to content or games you’ve blocked.

Avoid these traps by fostering open communication and trust, helping your children understand why limits exist. Tech tools can help, but they can never replace emotional education.

Before setting limits for your kids, take a look at yourself. “I can’t demand something from others if I don’t do it myself. It’s a matter of moral authority,” says Prats. If parents don’t follow the same rules they set, they lose credibility. When adults model those boundaries, “they earn the authority to ask for the same, because they’re setting the example.”

Re-examine your own behavior: “If, when we go out to eat, we’re the first ones to hand them a phone, the problem isn’t the phone, it’s the family,” Prats reflects. He suggests looking for alternatives: “Bring coloring materials instead of giving them a screen.” Find other activities or games that replace screen time.

“I’d say it’s a matter of agreements, building family consensus. Sometimes you don’t even need to set formal rules anymore, because balance comes naturally: they play cards, board games, spend time outdoors… they can mix different activities,” says Prats.

Remember: the best alternative to parental control apps is maintaining open dialogue, trust, and digital education with your children.

According to Montse Jiménez, healthy use happens when “they can disconnect without conflict or emotional dependence.” She adds that “they use technology as a tool, not as an emotional escape,” and “to learn, explore interests, and communicate, without always replacing offline experiences.”

Jiménez also notes that while screen time matters, the purpose and content matter even more. “Watching an educational video isn’t the same as spending hours on betting platforms or social media seeking constant validation,” she says.

That said, the World Health Organization (WHO), as Montse Jiménez points out, recommends specific screen-time limits by age: for children under 2 years, 0 minutes of screen time; ages 2 to 5, maximum 1 hour per day, always supervised; ages 6 to 12, short, segmented use with breaks, and no screens before bedtime.

At the same time, both schools and families should encourage reflection about what children watch and share online. Adult guidance, grounded in dialogue and example, is essential to help kids use technology responsibly.

As Jiménez concludes, “Educating in the digital world is a shared challenge and a social duty, it cannot fall solely on families or schools.” The entire community must get involved to offer models and tools that promote conscious and safe use.