What is Qustodio? What parents need to know

Qustodio is a parental control software that helps parents track and manage their children’s activity online. Features such as screen time management, location tracking and activity reports are all included to give parents greater control and knowledge over their child’s device usage.

Qustodio is available on Android, iOS, Windows and Mac and users have the choice between free and premium versions. The free version is limited however, with it only allowing parents to monitor a single device. The premium versions are tiered, with the Basic plan offering tools for core protection and costing £39.95 per year, while the Complete plan gives full access to all of Qustodio’s features and costs £69.95 per year.

To use Qustodio you must have access to your child’s devices, as it is necessary that you download the app onto any device you are wanting to monitor.

Once you’ve downloaded Qustodio onto your child’s devices, you can manage them from your web browser or from the Qustodio app on your own device.

Qustodio has many controls and tracking tools to allow parents to supervise their children effectively. These include:

• Screen time limits: Time limits can be placed on devices and apps. These limits can be specific for different days of the week, or for different times of the day. Parents can also choose to receive a notification if their child reaches a limit.

• Web filtering: Qustodio automatically blocks access to any mature sites, such as gambling or pornography. You can also turn on blocking for other categories like social media. You can choose other websites you want to be filtered and can assign to each website a category of Allow, Alert Me, or Block. This web filtering works on the most popular browsers including Chrome, Safari and Microsoft Edge, and blocks any browsers it does not support.

• Location tracking: You can track your child’s location using the app, with it storing up to 30 days of location data. A geofence can also be set, which means you will be notified if your child goes outside the boundary you have set for them.

• App management: You can choose to allow, set time limits, or block any apps that your child uses.

• Monitoring calls & messages: Parents can view who is calling their child or messaging them through SMS, and they can also view the content of these messages. On Android, parents can also choose to block specific numbers or block their child’s ability to make or receive non-emergency calls altogether. This blocking feature is not available on iOS.
• Activity reporting: Qustodio has an activity timeline that shows everything your child has been doing on their device, including web searches, text messages sent, and apps used. This data goes back 30 days.

• Wide range of parental controls
• Location tracking and geofencing capabilities
• Can manage multiple devices from one place
• Reporting on child’s activity

While Qustodio does have a comprehensive suite of parental controls, the free version of the app only allows you to monitor 1 device, meaning you will most likely have to pay for a premium version to fully manage your child’s digital activity.

There is also no social media tracking on Qustodio, so while you could block your child from using social media or put time limits on their usage, you can’t manage what they are doing or viewing while using the platforms. To deal with this, you will have to set parental controls on your child’s social media accounts directly.

When downloading Qustodio onto your child’s devices, there is an option to download it secretly so that your child is unaware that their device is being monitored. However, using this option could lead to a breakdown of trust if your child discovers the monitoring, as they may feel that their privacy has been violated. Have a conversation with your child to discuss why you want to put a monitoring app on their phone and explain that you are doing it so they can be safer while online, not to spy on or judge them.

Overall, Qustodio is a useful tool for monitoring and managing your child’s online activity, but you will need to pay for the premium version to be able to use it effectively.