Technical helpers

How to keep your child’s cell phone under control

There are many technical measures to protect children online, each of which has its own advantages and disadvantages.(Bild: ImageFlow)

The first cell phone has arrived, maybe it was even under the Christmas tree - now it's time to teach your offspring how to use it responsibly. Here you can find out what challenges parents face, what technical aids they can use and what advantages and disadvantages they have.

Children in Germany usually get their first cell phone at the age of seven or eight. However, they often have contact with it earlier: with older siblings, friends and, of course, their own parents, who are often willing to lend them their smartphone to keep them occupied (and therefore quiet) with games and videos during long car journeys or waiting times in restaurants. This is why, according to the Saferinternet.at study from 2020, 72% of zero to six-year-olds are already online before they have their own devices.

Difficult balancing act
Parents often have a queasy feeling: on the one hand, children should gain their own experience with the medium and learn how to use it independently. On the other hand, the little ones should not spend too much time in front of the screen. And then there is content that glorifies violence or is pornographic, which is not intended for children's eyes, which is why it is essential to protect them from it.

Surveillance versus the right to privacy
There are many technical options for restricting a child's usage time as well as their access to certain content, but not all of them are suitable for every child. In addition, each method has advantages as well as disadvantages that need to be weighed up against each other - after all, the child should be taken by the hand virtually, but not prevented from walking. In addition, every child has a right to privacy in accordance with Article 16 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and this should be preserved despite all protective measures.

Read on to find out how you can take all these points into account and still create a safe mobile environment for your child: