Artificial intelligence (AI) apps are everywhere, and teens are using them more than ever. From ChatGPT to Character.ai to Snapchat’s My AI, these chatbots are marketed as harmless, but they can expose kids to serious risks like dependency, inappropriate content, and even harmful advice.
Parents are asking: what parental controls exist for AI apps? And more importantly: what’s the best way to monitor them?
This guide breaks down:
The best parental monitor for AI apps is BrightCanary. Unlike app-based parental controls, BrightCanary works across every app your child uses — including AI chatbots.
While built-in parental controls for AI apps are minimal, BrightCanary gives parents a simple way to monitor all AI interactions in one place.
AI safety has become a major issue for parents and lawmakers.
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating the effects of AI chatbots on children. The FTC’s goal is to limit potential negative effects and inform users and parents of their risks, demanding child safety information from OpenAI, Meta, Alphabet, Snap, xAI, and other tech companies.
The news comes after a slew of stories about teenagers committing suicide or facing extreme mental health challenges after having extended conversations with AI chatbots, such as Sewell Setzer, a 14-year-old boy who killed himself following months of romantic conversations with AI characters on the platform Character.ai.
In August 2025, Matthew and Maria Raine brought the first wrongful death suit against OpenAI. They alleged that ChatGPT “coached” their son Adam Raine into suicide over several months.
“The truth is, AI companies and their investors have understood for years that capturing our children’s emotional dependence means market dominance,” said Megan Garcia, Setzer’s mom, in a recent testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Odds are, your teen is likely chatting with AI. According to Common Sense Media, around 70% of teens are using AI companions, but only 37% of parents know that their kids are using the apps.
Here’s an overview of the existing parental controls for popular AI apps your child might use:
Every platform handles parental controls differently, and some offer none at all. Additionally, teens can fake their ages, use private browsers, or download new AI apps parents haven’t heard of — all of which can negate the parental controls on AI platforms.
It’s an unfortunate truth that AI companies didn’t start to roll out meaningful parental controls until tragedies made headlines. Parents need to stay informed and involved, but kids can fall into the digital danger zone faster than they might think.
BrightCanary monitors every app your child uses, including AI companions. The child safety software just released a new feature that specifically shows you every AI app your child is using and summaries of their activity.
Kids use AI for a range of activities, like entertainment and homework help — but if they’re using AI inappropriately, you’ll get an alert in real-time. It all starts with a keyboard that you install on your child’s iPhone. It’s easy to set up, and it analyzes what your child types across every app: messaging, social media, forums, and AI.
Unlike app-by-app controls, BrightCanary is a unified parental monitor for AI that adapts to whatever platform your child is using.
Even with BrightCanary, it’s important to pair monitoring with parenting strategies:
AI companions like ChatGPT, Character.ai, and Snapchat’s My AI are widely used by teens, but built-in parental controls are minimal and inconsistent.
The best parental monitor for AI apps is BrightCanary, which works across every app, provides real-time alerts, and helps you understand your child’s conversations with AI through summaries and emotional insights.
Protect your child today. Download BrightCanary and get started for free.
Welcome to Parent Pixels, a parenting newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. This week:
🔐 ChatGPT adds parental controls for teens: OpenAI announced that parental control features for teens will be released within the month. The new settings will allow parents to link accounts with their teens, set guardrails around responses, and get alerts when the system detects signs of distress.
The update follows a wrongful death lawsuit recently filed in California. The parents of 16-year-old Adam Raine allege that ChatGPT contributed to, and even encouraged, their son’s suicide. OpenAI and other AI companies have also come under fire after multiple reports from people who say AI companion apps have contributed to their loved ones’ mental health crises.
With ChatGPT’s parental controls, parents will be able to:
Our take: What happened to the Raine family is a tragedy, and it’s unfortunate that OpenAI took this long to implement common-sense parental controls. Actions like this underscore the fact that the apps your child uses aren’t necessarily designed for kids — they’re designed for engagement, and OpenAI has even acknowledged that its GPT-4o model “fell short in recognizing signs of delusion or emotional dependency” in some instances.
While we wait for OpenAI to roll out parental controls, you can start monitoring your child’s AI chats right now. BrightCanary monitors your child’s interactions with AI apps on their iPhone, including Character.ai, Replika, and ChatGPT.
🎧 Teens can now message each other on Spotify: Ah, good, another way for your kid to send you new covers of all the songs from Kpop Demon Hunters — Spotify announced that users 16+ will now be able to direct message their friends. When users accept a message request, they’ll be able to share Spotify content, texts, and emojis back and forth. Users can also opt out of Messages in their Settings.
However, it’s relatively easy to fib about your age on Spotify, so there’s a chance your child might be able to use the new messages feature, even if they’re younger than 16. And we’re not huge fans of new ways for strangers to connect with kids on popular apps. Take a step to check your child’s age and privacy settings on Spotify, and talk to them about why it’s important to only talk to people they know in real life and what to do if someone makes them feel uncomfortable.
Take the extra step to monitor their activity, too. If you have the BrightCanary Keyboard installed, you can monitor what they type on all the apps they use, including Spotify messages.
Parent Pixels is a biweekly newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox a day early? Subscribe here.
One of the best ways to connect with your kiddo: by showing curiosity about what they actually care about. BrightCanary’s Interests section highlights topics your child has been typing about most often, like certain TV shows and bands. Use those clues to ask open-ended questions that show you’re paying attention and want to understand their world. Here are some conversation starters to get you going:
👀 As if Roblox wasn’t taking up enough of your child’s screen time: Roblox announced plans to launch its own TikTok-style app called “Roblox Moments.”
🫠 Bus tracker apps. Parent portals. And endless, endless messages. Are you suffering from digital burnout because of too many school apps and emails? Check out these tips to manage it all.
🚫 Illinois has become the first state to ban AI apps from providing mental health advice, a move which is intended to protect vulnerable users from receiving harmful medical advice from unregulated AI apps.
🌮 Sounds like something our teens would do: Taco Bell is rethinking its AI drive-throughs after a man ordered 18,000 waters.
Welcome to Parent Pixels, a parenting newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. This week:
🤖 Meta’s AI rules let chatbots have inappropriate conversations with kids: Today in “Why We Don’t Trust Big Tech Companies to Keep Kids Safe” — a shocking investigation from Reuters should concern anyone who cares about child online safety. An internal Meta document detailing policies on chatbot behavior found that the company permits its AI chatbots to engage in “romantic or sensual” conversations with children to an extent that is, to use an academic term, gross AF. (The policies draw a line at sexually explicit conversations, but the examples provided by Reuters walk right up to that line.)
Meta’s AI can be found across Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. The policy document was approved by Meta’s legal, public policy, and engineering staff, including its chief ethicist. The document also permits blatantly false and racist content. Meta said the company is in the process of revising the document and that such conversations with children never should have been allowed, despite it going through literally three departments.
While AI chatbots can help entertain and even support kids, Meta’s lack of content filtering for its most vulnerable users should be a red flag for everyone. AI is part of your child’s social media experience if they use Instagram, WhatsApp, or Facebook, and this recent news underscores the importance of monitoring their use — because tech companies aren’t going to.
BrightCanary can help you keep track of what your child types across all the apps they use on their iPhone and iPad, including AI chatbot apps. On our blog, we covered how to protect your child from the risks of social AI chatbots.
👀 What are teens experiencing on social media? Negative headlines about social media abound, but what about the positives? In a recent study, researchers investigated early teens’ (ages 12–15) experiences online, and the results might surprise you. Over a 15-day period, 59% of teens reported any negative experience on social media (like bullying or seeing people post about drugs), while an overwhelming majority (90%!) of teens reported any positive experience.
According to study author Jacqueline Nesi, PhD, 80% of teens said they saw something that made them feel happy or inspired, 78% had someone share something funny or entertaining with them, and 57% said people said supportive or encouraging things.
In comparison, 39% of teens said they saw something that made them feel upset or uncomfortable, 18% said someone made negative comments or said mean things, and 7% were bullied, harassed, or teased.
“This does not mean we can or should dismiss the negatives — but it’s a good reminder to make sure we’re talking to teens about the good stuff, too,” Nesi wrote.
📱 Webinar: How to make social media as safe as it CAN be: Feeling overwhelmed with all the ins and outs of social media? Don’t miss this webinar series, beginning Sept. 8: “Safe Social Media?!?” by Digital Mom Media and Healthy Screen Habits.
In this webinar, you’ll learn everything you need to make social media as safe as possible — how to get started, what to know about popular platforms, and how to build a sustainable social media plan. Learn more and get your tickets today at a special rate.
Parent Pixels is a biweekly newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox a day early? Subscribe here.
We often focus on the risks of social media, but it’s worth remembering that teens also find joy and connection online.. The key is balance: encouraging positive use while protecting their sleep and well-being by keeping devices out of bedrooms at night. Here are some conversation starters to help you talk with your teen about healthy social media habits:
🚽 Bad news if you’re feeling delulu about all the new slang terms your kids are using: “skibidi,” “delulu,” and “tradwife” are among the latest words added to the Cambridge Dictionary, which only adds words that have staying power. No word on rizz, though.
‼️Character.AI now has a social feed, in which AI chatbots can post thoughts and pictures to a feed and interact with humans.
📵 What’s the one tech rule that will “future-proof” your kids? No screens in the bedroom. Find out why via The Atlantic.
When should you give your child a smartphone? A growing number of parents are pledging to wait until the end of eighth grade. It’s part of a national campaign called Wait Until 8th, a movement that’s now 115,000 parents strong.
We spoke with Brooke Shannon, executive director and founder of Wait Until 8th, about what happens after families take the pledge to delay and how they make it work.
The idea behind Wait Until 8th is simple: smartphones weren’t made for kids. A growing number of studies link excessive smartphone use to worse academic performance, poor sleep quality, and worse mental health, among other concerns.
By waiting until at least age 14, families can help preserve the elementary and middle school years — limiting distractions and dangers, while giving kids more time to just be kids.
Wait Until 8th also accomplishes something that most smartphone bans do not: the pledge is designed to rally parents from the same school to take the pledge together, creating a collective delay that gives families community support and helps ease peer pressure (“Mom, everyone else has an iPhone!”).
Once families take the Wait Until 8th pledge, what does life actually look like without a smartphone? Are there routines or mindset shifts that tend to help most?
Honestly, it usually looks a lot like childhood used to. Kids still connect with their friends, but it is more through playdates, sports, and group activities instead of group texts and social media.
Families that do well with the pledge often create routines that make it feel natural, such as family dinners without devices, encouraging after-school hangouts, or getting kids into hobbies that keep them engaged offline.
The biggest shift is really in mindset. It helps to stop thinking of the pledge as “holding kids back” and instead see it as giving them space to grow up without the added stress of a smartphone.
Childhood is short, and we are protecting that time.
What are the biggest challenges families face after saying no to smartphones (especially in middle school) and how do they navigate the peer pressure that can come with that?
The number one challenge families expect is peer pressure. Middle schoolers often say, “Everyone else has one,” and that can feel overwhelming. But this is where the beauty of the pledge shines.
When families take the pledge together, kids quickly realize they are not the only ones without a phone. That changes everything. Instead of being singled out, they see classmates and friends in the same situation, and the pressure eases.
For parents, too, it is reassuring to know other families are making the same choice, so it no longer feels like you are swimming upstream alone. Many families tell us that the pledge makes waiting much easier because it replaces isolation with community.
What role does community play in making the pledge sustainable? Have you seen examples of families or schools building support systems around this choice?
Community makes all the difference. When parents and schools work together, it takes the pressure off everyone. Collective support helps both kids and parents feel that this is not just a “weird rule” in their house, it is a shared value in their community.
Are there particular tools, tips, or talking points you recommend to help parents explain the decision to their child — and to other parents who might question it?
With kids, being honest and empathetic goes a long way. You might say something like, “We want to protect your time for the things you love, sports, friends, and fun, without all the pressure that comes with a phone right now.” Or even, “Phones can wait, but childhood cannot.”
With other parents, it can be as simple as saying, “We are choosing to wait because of what the research says about mental health and attention span.” In terms of tools, some families use a basic phone or a family-shared device for safety, and that can make the transition easier.
For parents who are on the fence or feeling like it’s “too late,” what encouragement or advice would you offer? Is it ever too late to rethink the smartphone timeline?
It is never too late. Even if your child already has a phone, you can rethink what that looks like, perhaps by removing social media, setting clear screen-free times, or even swapping to a basic phone.
The pledge was never about being perfect, it is about being intentional. Every step you take to delay or limit smartphones gives your child more space to be present and enjoy being a kid. So no, it is not too late at all, and you are giving your child a gift at any stage if you choose to slow things down.
The decision of when (or if) to give your child a smartphone depends on your family’s values, lifestyle, and your child’s maturity. But most experts agree: delaying access to internet-connected devices — especially smartphones — can protect your child’s well-being and development.
When your child is ready for a device like an iPhone or iPad, stay involved. Set boundaries, monitor their online activity, and keep the conversation going. And if you need support, BrightCanary makes it easier to monitor what your child types across apps like Snapchat, Instagram, and Discord, so you can stay informed and connected.
Welcome to Parent Pixels, a parenting newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. This week:
📍 Teens can now share location with friends on Instagram: The new Instagram Map allows users to share their location with friends and see content people are posting from different places. The feature is similar to Snapchat’s Snap Map … and has similar privacy concerns: if your child isn’t picky about who follows them on Instagram, they might end up sharing their location with strangers. Big yikes.
Location sharing is off unless you opt in, and if you’ve set up parental supervision on your teen’s account, you’ll get notified if your teen starts sharing their location and see who they’re sharing their location with.
The fact remains, though, that this feature opens up more risks than rewards, and we recommend talking to your teen about why it’s better to keep their location private (and only share their location with you), rather than broadcasting their personal info to their entire friends list.
👀 TikTok introduces new parental controls: TikTok’s parental control suite is getting an upgrade just in time for the school year. TikTok Family Pairing allows parents to set content and communication limits for their teen. Soon, Family Pairing will also automatically notify a parent when their teen uploads anything that’s visible to others on TikTok, and it will show parents what privacy settings and topics their teen has selected to shape their feed.
If your child uses TikTok and you haven’t already set up Family Pairing, now is the time — but pair it with regular check-ins and conversations about what they see on their For You page. (Psst: For extra protection, BrightCanary monitors what your child types on all the apps they use, including TikTok comments and messages.)
▶️ YouTube will use AI to tell if your child fibbed about their age: YouTube is cracking down on age verification. YouTube has different experiences for kids and adults, including age-restricted protections like disabled personalized advertising and limiting repetitive views of some content — but it’s relatively easy for kids to fib about their age. Soon, YouTube will use machine learning to determine if a user is an adult or not.
The AI will analyze a bunch of signals, including the types of videos a user searches for and how old the account is. For users who are incorrectly flagged as kids (or kids at heart), they’ll have the option to verify that they’re older than 18 using a government ID or other form of identification.
So. If everything works as it should, kids won’t be able to watch age-restricted content. Of course, that’s a big “if.” Continue to supervise your child’s YouTube use. Talk about the content they see and what to do if something makes them feel uncomfortable. You can use BrightCanary to monitor their YouTube account and keep track of what they watch, including the ads they see.
📱 Webinar: How to make social media as safe as it CAN be: Lots of social media updates this week, but that’s because social media platforms constantly update their features and protections (or lack thereof). That’s why we’re happy to share “Safe Social Media?!?” by Digital Mom Media and Healthy Screen Habits.
In this webinar, you’ll learn everything you need to make social media as safe as possible — how to get started, what to know about popular platforms, and how to build a sustainable social media plan. Learn more and get your tickets today.
Parent Pixels is a biweekly newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox a day early? Subscribe here.
We’re officially in back-to-school season. Cue the new backpacks, earlier bedtimes, and the return of juggling group chats and the social dynamics of the school hallways. The good news: A few honest conversations now can help your child start the year with healthy habits and a little more confidence. Here are conversation-starters to help you talk about managing stress, balancing screen time, and handling social pressures:
😬 Heads up if your teen is fueled by energy drinks: High Noon is recalling some vodka seltzers mislabeled as Celsius energy drinks.
⚠️ Minnesota is set to include warning labels on social media sites. Agree or disagree?
🚫 “ … YouTube cannot be trusted — the algorithm leads you very quickly down weird or concerning rabbit holes and the messaging in a video is often subtle and hard to screen as a parent without pre-watching everything (which is not realistic).” The Guardian surveyed parents about how their kids use YouTube, and the responses paint a picture of YouTube’s major pros and cons.
A new school year doesn’t just mean backpacks and bus rides. It often comes with a new phone or tablet, new social circles, and more opportunities for unsupervised time online. That’s a perfect storm for kids to encounter digital risks, many of which parents never see coming.
At BrightCanary, we use real-time monitoring and AI to help parents understand what their kids are actually doing online. Based on what we’ve seen kids searching for and typing into their devices, here are five digital dangers to watch for this school year, broken down by age.
What we’ve seen: We’ve flagged messages and searches from kids expressing feelings of sadness, isolation, anxiety, and hopelessness, often late at night.
What it is: Algorithms on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube tend to serve up more of what a child interacts with. That means one post about depression can quickly spiral into a feed full of triggering or glamorized content about self-harm, eating disorders, or suicidal ideation. As many as 41% of girls see suicide-related content on Instagram every month.
What’s worse: Kids often hide this behavior. We’ve seen searches phrased in vague or coded terms, like “unalive” or “d13” for feelings about suicidal ideation.
How it can show up by age:
What we’ve seen: We’ve flagged instances of teens having explicit conversations with adults online.
What it is: Online grooming happens when a predator builds trust with a child in order to exploit them sexually. These interactions often start in social apps or games with chat features, like Roblox, Reddit, or Minecraft.
Predators are skilled at targeting vulnerabilities. They may compliment your child or offer support to get them on their side. If your child has a public profile or uses apps without strict age restrictions, they’re more exposed.
How it can show up by age:
What we’ve seen: We’ve flagged conversations where teens mention drug slang, ask where to buy alcohol, or joke about using drugs. There have also been reports about drug dealers using social media platforms to arrange sales.
What it is: From vaping in the bathroom to buying drugs on Snapchat, substance use is rampant in schools. Kids can be exposed to drug-related content earlier than many parents realize, whether it’s memes glamorizing weed, peers using slang like “gas” or “snow,” or influencers normalizing casual drinking.
Some dealers even use secret messaging apps to advertise and arrange drug deals, making it harder for parents to spot the warning signs.
How it can show up by age:
What we’ve seen: We’ve caught messages where kids were told to “KYS” (“kill yourself”), targeted in toxic group chats, or even initiated bullying via direct messages.
What it is: Cyberbullying takes many forms, like name-calling, exclusion, harassment, doxxing, or spreading memes at someone’s expense. As many as 90% of teens have been bullied online, so it’s more common than you might think. And because it happens in group chats, DMs, and disappearing messages, it often flies under the radar.
How it can show up by age:
What we’ve seen: Kids sharing their full names, locations, and school names in chats, often without realizing how dangerous that can be.
What it is: Many kids don’t think twice about sharing personal details online. But doing so can expose them to predators, online scams, and doxxing. Even casual details in an Instagram caption can help someone track them down in real life or use their personal details against them.
How it can show up by age:
It’s hard to protect your kids from what you don’t understand. Stay up to date on emerging apps, trends, and online behaviors (that’s what we’re here for).
Talk regularly with your child about what they’re seeing online. Use open-ended questions, and avoid jumping to conclusions. The goal is connection, not control.
Make clear rules around screen time, privacy settings, and what’s okay to share. Revisit these rules as your child gets older and their digital life evolves.
BrightCanary gives you real-time summaries of what your child types online. Our keyboard-based monitoring works across every app they use on their iPhone or iPad, even if they use incognito mode or secret accounts.
If something feels off, trust your gut. You can reach out to teachers or school administrators, report behavior on social platforms, and contact authorities if there’s a serious risk.
Back-to-school season isn’t just about pencils and planners; it’s a key moment to check in on your child’s digital life. The online world they navigate is complex and ever-changing. But with awareness, conversation, and the right tools, you can help them stay safer this school year.
BrightCanary makes it easier. Our AI-powered monitoring alerts you to red flags and gives you a clearer picture of your child’s digital world so you can parent with confidence.
The new BrightCanary app uses a secure keyboard to monitor what your child types across every app they use. Whether they’re sending a message, texting a friend, or commenting on a video, BrightCanary gives you real-time insights and alerts.
The BrightCanary Keyboard replaces login-based monitoring for most apps. Instead of needing passwords to monitor your child’s social media accounts or internet activity, BrightCanary works by securely monitoring what your child types using a keyboard installed on their iPhone or iPad.
This means:
The app uses AI to distill what’s most important to you, like concerning alerts and emotional insights, so you don’t have to sift through every message.
“We heard from parents who wanted better visibility into their child’s digital life, especially on Apple devices,” Karl said. “The keyboard is a smarter, simpler way to stay informed.”
To get started, parents install the BrightCanary app on their phone and their child’s device. Once the BrightCanary Keyboard is set up and made the default on the child’s device, the app begins securely processing what’s typed and delivers real-time alerts and summaries to the parent’s dashboard.
You’ll see:
BrightCanary does not monitor passwords or sensitive financial or personal information.
“We’ve always believed in awareness and building connection, not surveillance,” Steve said. “The keyboard helps parents see the bigger picture, like what their child is experiencing and talking about, without overstepping.”
Today’s kids live in an all-app, all-the-time world. They don’t just text: they type messages, replies, and comments in a dozen different places, and sometimes in slang that even Google struggles to decode.
The BrightCanary Keyboard gives you a unified view of that world, no matter where they’re typing.
Parental monitoring isn’t about catching them doing something wrong. It’s about knowing enough to guide them through the digital messiness of growing up. To check in when something feels off. To catch early warning signs before they spiral. To build trust and connection, even when the conversation is hard.
“There’s no perfect tool for parenting in the digital age, but we think this gets us a lot closer,” Karl said.
Learn how to set up the BrightCanary Keyboard on your child's device.
Welcome to Parent Pixels, a parenting newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. This week:
📱 The keyboard that helps you see what your child types across all apps: Kids don’t just chat on one app. They’re messaging on Instagram, searching on Google, and talking to friends on Discord simultaneously and while eating all the food in your fridge. With the new BrightCanary Keyboard, you can monitor typed activity across any app — from Discord to Roblox chats. With AI-powered insights and real-time concerning content alerts, you can stay connected and informed, without reading every word. Plus, you can still monitor text messages and Google + YouTube searches with the BrightCanary app. This feature is available now, and if you currently use BrightCanary, you’ll see an update in the coming weeks. Learn how it works and how to set it up.
😩 Does the number of times teens pick up their phones influence their mood? If you have an iPhone, you can check how often you pick up your smartphone during the day: Go to Settings > Screen Time > See all app and website activity > Pickups. You can even see which apps you checked most often after picking up your phone. That’s interesting (and potentially harrowing, depending on how often you pick up your phone), but how does this impact teens? Researchers studied a group of teens over two weeks and found that teens picked up their phones an average of 112.6 times per day. Nearly half (49%) of pickups were for Snapchat, followed by Instagram (13%) and messages (12%). They also found:
Over at Techno Sapiens, Jacqueline Nessi, PhD, one of the authors on the study, notes that the smartphones didn’t seem to impact the teen’s moods. Rather, kids who look at their phones more often might see things that make them upset, or kids who already have variable emotions use their phones to feel better, among other factors.
If your teen is using their phone to help cope with their emotions, it’s important to pay attention to what type of content they’re consuming. Are they talking to a friend or family member, or are they doomscrolling on Instagram? Staying involved can help you teach your child better ways to regulate their emotions, especially if their social media algorithm is making them feel worse. (If that’s the case, here’s how to reset their algorithm together.)
🔒 Meta enhances direct messaging protections for teen users: New safety features in Instagram DMs will allow teens to see more information about who they’re chatting with, like when the account was created and important safety tips to spot potential scammers. Teens can also block and report accounts directly from DMs. It’s an unfortunate truth that teens can be scammed by phishing attempts, catfishing, and more, directly from their inbox. Instagram Teen Accounts automatically limit who can message them, so they can only be messaged by people they follow. The trick is making sure that your teen signed up for Instagram with their correct birthdate — the enhanced safety features only work if Instagram recognizes that your teen is, well, a teen. If your kiddo uses Instagram, double-check their privacy settings and talk to them about why it’s important that they use the strictest privacy settings possible and only talk to people they know in real life.
Did you know? With the new BrightCanary Keyboard, you can monitor what your child types in their Instagram DMs and get real-time alerts when BrightCanary identifies red flags, like self-harm or drug references.
Parent Pixels is a biweekly newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox a day early? Subscribe here.
Your child is typing more than they’re talking. How can you help them stay safe in every corner of the internet, even the ones you don’t check daily? The BrightCanary Keyboard gives parents a new window into the digital world their kids are navigating. Here’s how to talk about it together.
🫠 Social media slang is reshaping the way we speak. Does all the new slang today make you feel so delulu? The way kids communicate online changes fast, fueled by new trends online and in the media they consume. CBS reports on how platforms like TikTok are transforming modern language. (Heads up: With the BrightCanary Keyboard, you’ll be able to see what your child types, even when they’re using slang or coded language.)
😬 Elon Musk announced that his AI startup xAI will make an app dedicated to kid-friendly content and call it Baby Grok, which, y’know, isn’t ideal, given the company’s history with content moderation and lack of safeguards for younger users. xAI’s chatbot Grok has a history of sharing problematic content online, to say the least.
🍬 Are rewards for children doing more harm than good? Research suggests that rewards for things kids wouldn’t typically do on their own (like cleaning their room) are fine because they can help “jumpstart” extrinsic motivation — kinda how you might give yourself a little treat after putting away laundry or finally taking the car to get serviced. Read more at the very excellent Parenting Translator.
What do Snapchat, Discord, Instagram, and text messages have in common? They’re where kids are spending their time online and where traditional child safety apps often fall short.
So, BrightCanary built something better.
The new BrightCanary app uses a secure keyboard to monitor what your child types across every app they use. Whether they’re sending a message, texting a friend, or commenting on a video, BrightCanary gives you real-time insights and alerts.
We spoke with BrightCanary co-founders Karl Stillner and Steve Dossick about the new keyboard and why it’s so essential for parents today.
The BrightCanary Keyboard replaces login-based monitoring for most apps. Instead of needing passwords to monitor your child’s social media accounts or internet activity, BrightCanary works by securely monitoring what your child types using a keyboard installed on their iPhone or iPad.
This means:
The app uses AI to distill what’s most important to you, like concerning alerts and emotional insights, so you don’t have to sift through every message.
“We heard from parents who wanted better visibility into their child’s digital life, especially on Apple devices,” Karl said. “The keyboard is a smarter, simpler way to stay informed.”
To get started, parents install the BrightCanary app on their phone and their child’s device. Once the BrightCanary Keyboard is set up and made the default on the child’s device, the app begins securely processing what’s typed and delivers real-time alerts and summaries to the parent’s dashboard.
You’ll see:
BrightCanary does not monitor passwords or sensitive financial or personal information.
“We’ve always believed in awareness and building connection, not surveillance,” Steve said. “The keyboard helps parents see the bigger picture, like what their child is experiencing and talking about, without overstepping.”
Today’s kids live in an all-app, all-the-time world. They don’t just text: they type messages, replies, and comments in a dozen different places, and sometimes in slang that even Google struggles to decode.
The BrightCanary Keyboard gives you a unified view of that world, no matter where they’re typing.
Parental monitoring isn’t about catching them doing something wrong. It’s about knowing enough to guide them through the digital messiness of growing up. To check in when something feels off. To catch early warning signs before they spiral. To build trust and connection, even when the conversation is hard.
“There’s no perfect tool for parenting in the digital age, but we think this gets us a lot closer,” Karl said.
The BrightCanary Keyboard is just one part of how BrightCanary helps families stay informed.
BrightCanary offers multiple monitoring options, so you can choose the tools that work best for your child’s device and your parenting style:
Each plan includes AI-powered summaries and tools to help you have meaningful, informed conversations with your child.
Whether you’re looking for broad coverage across all apps or full visibility into messages and media, BrightCanary gives you the flexibility to monitor what matters most.
Ready to try it?
Download BrightCanary on the App Store today and start your free trial. Need help? Visit our how-to guide or reach out to support@brightcanary.io — we’re happy to walk you through it.
Welcome to Parent Pixels, a parenting newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. This week:
📵 Today’s teens are more aware of the negative effects of social media: New research from Pew Research Center reveals that more teens believe they spend too much time on social platforms (which parents have been telling them since they signed up). The findings are based on a survey of teens ages 13–17. Here are a few highlights:
Pew’s findings echo new research from GWI that states more young people are limiting their screen time to better manage their mental health, personal safety, and attention span. Since 2022, the number of 12- to 15-year-olds who take breaks from devices rose 18% to 40%.
“Many of them are waking up to the fact that these platforms aren’t neutral. They’re designed to manipulate attention … They are realising that their time, focus and self-esteem are being monetised by some of the world’s biggest companies. Taking a break has become an act of rebellion.” - Daisy Greenwell
What this means for you: More teens are exhausted by the pressure of being chronically online. If your child uses social media, check in with them regularly to discuss how their online interactions make them feel. We always recommend:
Did you know? BrightCanary monitors the apps your child uses most often, like YouTube videos and sent Instagram messages, and gives you emotional insights in one easy-to-read dashboard.
Parent Pixels is a biweekly newsletter filled with practical advice, news, and resources to support you and your kids in the digital age. Want this newsletter delivered to your inbox a day early? Subscribe here.
Learning how to put the phone down is one of the most important digital skills a teen can develop. Whether it’s recognizing when their brain needs a break, setting personal screen time limits, or choosing to be present, your teen may just need a little nudge (and a few honest conversations) to build that muscle.
🚗 Waymo, creators of self-driving cars, announced that 14- to 17-year-olds can now hail driverless rides on their own. The program is launching in Phoenix with plans to expand to more cities. No word on whether the youths will start calling this “ghost riding the Waymo.”
😬 Once you’ve opened Pandora’s box (aka, given your child a smartphone or social media without any restrictions), how do you go back and add rules?
🤗 Do you follow us on Instagram and TikTok? Keep your eyes peeled for some big announcements in the coming weeks!
