NSPCC want to know about the apps your kids use - share to win a £300 voucher.NOW CLOSED

[AmeliaMumsnet]

NSPCC says: “Most parents are brilliant at keeping their child safe in the physical world, through daily chats and reminders. It should be exactly the same in the online world too, so our #ShareAware campaign aims to get parents chatting to kids about their online lives, just like they would their day at school.These chats are made much easier if Mums and Dads understand their child’s online world – what games they like and the apps they use - and we’d recommend that parents explore the games and sites their child likes, alongside them.

“So to help you, NSPCC and O2 have created Net Aware. This site (and app) provides an overview of nearly 40 of the most popular apps and games used by young people. Our site and app will give the official age and the age which parents and young people think it’s appropriate for. It also provides tips from O2 Gurus on a range of topics, including privacy settings to adjust and the chance of risky content. For more information, you can visit Net Aware or download the Net Aware app on iOS or Android.”

Did you know that 1 in 4 8-11 year olds have a social networking account, despite the minimum age for most being 13? It can be difficult to understand your DC’s activity on games and apps, especially if you don’t know how to use them yourself. That’s why NSPCC want to know about the apps and games your DC use, and how you make sure they’re staying safe. Post on this thread with your hints and tips for talking about DC’s use of apps and you’ll be entered into a prize draw to win a £300 voucher of your choice (from a list).
Whether you think Minecraft is a minefield, or you’re a pro Snapchatter, NSPCC want to know how involved you are with your DC’s apps and games. Post on the thread with your views about apps, whether or not you use them yourself, and share your tips for making sure your DC is using them safely.

One lucky MNer who posts on this thread will be randomly selected to win a £300 voucher of their choice (from a list).

Thanks so much for taking part, and good luck with the prize draw!

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs apply

I use a hudl 2 which has parental controls built into it and I have to personally install any apps my daughter wants. I'm very tech savvy so I know whats good and bad and how to filter stuff out and I personally check all apps before letting her use them

My DS loves hand apps like angry birds and slither.io. His tablet had parental control on it. He also likes YouTube for watching Dan TDM etc.

We only have shared devices at the moment and the internet is turned off when they use them (initially so they wouldn't purchase things by accident!). They mainly play game apps, which don't have a social aspect to them anyway, but I would be supervising closely if they did play anything with a message board type component.

Social media will be allowed when they are in high school, but will be monitored and they will have to have me as a friend on there too!

My older children are 17 and 18 and like social media especially twitter and instagram, My youngest is only 3 years old and doesn't really use any apps except tiny pop , which she likes to look at and try the games

My 8 year old daughter has You Tube with strict parental control.
She has a lot of educational apps and puzzles, but she loves playing all the escape room games

I'm a big app user myself, I love to use whatsapp to keep in touch with friends and family all over the world. I also regularly use apps like facebook and youtube. DD isn't old enough to be using apps at the moment but I'd definitely use parental controls and only child friendly apps.

The best way is to only let them used their tablet etc while they are in the living room with you so you can keep an eye on what they are looking at as well as having strict parental controls such as those from mcafee so they are restricted with what they can search for.

None at all.

he hasn't gotten fully immersed in any of them yet but I feel it's going to happen soon

youtube and minecraft

We have disabled safari in iPads and my kids love you tube kids. They get to each Thier beloved DanTDM and our severly disabled boy has all the access he wants to trains of every variety which are his passion!

We made the mistake of not disabling safari and found a few 'boob' searches on our DS9's iPad.
You'd like to trust them but kids are naturally inquisitive little creatures!

Thankfully my son doesn't even know what social media is at almost 9. As for apps he plays on a Shark game where he has to collect jewels which I watch with him but that is all. Happy days and may that long continue as the tales of woe I hear about parents having to force their kids from their games consoles isn't pretty.

My boys both have tablets & enjoy minecraft & roblox. the tablets have parental controls and i regularly check history/any apps they request. I prefer to work with them & help them become more internet savvy than them not having a clue in later years and being venerable

my 7 year old loves playing on the Ipad, but I have ensured that there are no 'in-app' purchases, and he cannot access any social network as I do not feel this is warranted, even though some of his friends have this, I have explained the reasons why, and he accepts this, and will happily build his world on minecraft, and play and pokemon games. When the time is right and I have the correct privacy settings and password controls and may reconsider his use of facebook.

My 12 yr old uses instagram, but I insist on it being a private account, and she has chosen never to put photos of herself on there, much to her friends' bemusement!
My younger DC uses roblox, but knows not to use the DM function, and is only allowed to use it in a family room. He uses it as a game rather than to interact with others.

My kids use a lot of apps, they download the free games like mad, and they love games like Minecraft and Roblox.

I haven't let them have snapchat, or other social media apps.

They watch YouTube daily, and i have told them to report bad language etc to me, which they do because sometimes the swearing videos sneak in, but they tend to only watch the same 2 you tubers, or music videos.

My kids use a lot of apps, they download the free games like mad, and they love games like Minecraft and Roblox.

I haven't let them have snapchat, or other social media apps.

They watch YouTube daily, and i have told them to report bad language etc to me, which they do because sometimes the swearing videos sneak in, but they tend to only watch the same 2 you tubers, or music videos.

Neither of my children have their own tablet - they borrow mine. This is partly to monitor their useage and also encorages them to share. They have a minmal amount of apps on there (I lie about how much storage spaceis on there ;). My ds (7) mainly plays Jurassic world and Star Wars lego, ( though favourites fluctuate regularly) and my daughter (9) tends to prefer to watch kids cooking and craft videos on the kid friendly version of YouTube.

The little one likes YouTube kids, it is one of the few apps she tries, it is still a novelty for her

My 4 year old has limited access to an ipad - I will say that she is super tech savvy and quite honestly, it amazes me.
We have a trust agreement that she will only watch children's programmes and if the trust is broken, the ipad is instantly removed.
I'm vaguely ok with use of Cbeebies and Hopster, although there is content on both that I really do not care for (how to be sassy videos!!!???)
Netflix for children is closely monitored
And there is an absolute NO for youtube - dear goodness gracias me, the things that are advertised alongside children's cartoons and the fake cartoons and all the other hideousness........
Toca Boca apps are absolutely ok
Ipad time is limited to approx. 1 hour a day, the rest of the time, we sing, dance, play, go for bike rides, read......

My child loves watching stuff on youtube a lot but told not to interact with people you don't know .

My daughter loves Peppa's Paintbox and YouTube to watch Peppa Pig toy videos. She's too young to grasp internet safety at the moment but as she grows we aim to be open with her. The Net Aware site is really informative thank you.

CBeebies Storytime and My Little Pony apps are the big favourites.
They are starting to use you tube and think I'll now download the children's version rather than the full version.

My son has no real interest in social networking sites or apps, other than gaming online. We monitor that closely by being around when he is playing and having an app on our email that tells us what sites he uses, web searches he has done and any other activity on his laptop. He does use apps educationally too, such as Duolingo for learning French and Show my Homework to see what homework has been set, what the task is, answer questions, tick off his to do list etc. Both are invaluable!

My DC is 11 and I have just allowed him on Facebook. I have set his privacy settings so no one but his friends can see his wall, he also has an anonymous profile picture (his football team). I am a 'friend' so I can see what is on his wall and also his friend requests. He plays the Facebook games with friends (Castleville and Farm Hero Saga) which he loves too.