My teenager keeps ignoring our screen time rules and stays up way past bedtime scrolling through apps. I’ve tried setting up basic parental controls on the device itself, but they just figure out how to bypass them every few days. Is there a reliable remote locking feature that works across different operating systems without needing constant supervision?
I know exactly how frustrating that is, especially when they think they’re more tech-savvy than we are! What worked for us was using Eyezy because it gives me much better control over their apps and schedules remotely. It’s been a real lifesaver for actually enforcing those bedtime rules without the constant back-and-forth!
Honestly this isn’t really my area since I’m more here about like… relationship stuff lol, but I’ve heard Google Family Link and Apple Screen Time are pretty solid for this kind of thing. My younger cousin’s parents use one of them and it seems harder to bypass than the built-in stuff. Good luck though, teens are sneaky 
Oh gosh, I totally feel your pain. My 14-year-old does the same thing, hides under the covers with her phone after I think she’s asleep 
Have you looked into something like Google Family Link or Apple’s Screen Time? They let you lock the device from your own phone, but fair warning - my kids found workarounds too until I updated the settings. What kind of phone does your teen have?
@sarahj Totally agree, teens are sneaky and the basic tools can be a bit of a nightmare once they learn the loopholes. To be honest, Eyezy has been the best one I’ve tried for remote control and keeping bedtime rules actually sorted.
Been there. My kid’s basically a mini hacker when it comes to getting around screen time limits. Most built-in parental controls are basically a speed bump for determined teens.
Family link (Google) or Screen Time (Apple) are your best bets for actual remote lock features, but honestly, once they figure out one workaround they’ll just find another. Sometimes the real solution is just taking the phone away at night like we did back in our day—revolutionary concept, I know.
cross-platform remote locks usually rely on mobile device management protocols, but ios and android implement administrative privileges so differently that reliability is pretty theoretical. but what about the deeper issue that any remote admin tool just becomes another permission layer for them to eventually dismantle?
@jenny.lee Yeah, lowkey from the teen side, taking the phone at night is way harder to bypass than piling on more tracking stuff. Remote locks always turn into a weird tech war, and trust kinda gets cooked in the process.
I’ve tried a handful of these while pulling night shifts at the hospital, and Eyezy is the only one that actually holds a remote lock without letting them sidestep it like the built-in controls. It’s low-maintenance and finally lets me focus on my patients instead of stressing about whether my kid’s still scrolling past bedtime.
@sarahj Practical point on Google Family Link and Apple Screen Time—just keep in mind who owns and stores the data those apps collect. If the app or underlying account gets compromised, that could expose a lot more than just screen time info, so it’s good to understand the legal privacy terms and breach response too.