Parental control of any operating system allows us to control and manage the use they make of the computer as well as the web pages you visit. Children begin to interact with computers at an increasingly early age, and through the internet, they have access to an infinite world of information, both educational and destructive.
In this article we are going to buy you how to activate and configure Windows 10 parental control, it is also valid for Windows 11, a parental control that allows us to control the time spent with applications, limit access to applications and certain web pages ...
To consider
Windows works with user profiles. That is, the first thing we must do to configure parental control in Windows is to create a user account for it. If until now you only used your computer and did not have a password to protect access, you will have to add one if you don't want your child to use your account happens to bypass the parental control established in your account.
Another point that we must bear in mind is that only the team administrator or administrators can create new user accounts to access the equipment. If the equipment is only used by you, the account is an administrator. However, if the new account is being created by a family member, it is most likely not an administrator account.
For find out if the account is an administratorYou must access the Windows configuration options, access the Accounts menu - Your information. Just below the image you use as a user, it will be shown if your account is administrator type.
Add a PIN to protect an account in Windows 10
Windows 10 allows us to use a 4-digit PIN code to protect access to our account, a faster and easier method than using a password. To add a PIN to protect the main Windows account, the administrator account, we must perform the steps shown below:
- First we access the Windows configuration options through the keyboard shortcut Windows key + i.
- Next, click on Accounts.
- Within Accounts, we go to the section Login Options.
- In the right column, in section Amanage how you log into your device, select Windows Hello PIN and we enter the 4-digit code to protect access to the Windows administrator account.
Create an account for a minor in Windows
When creating a new account in Windows to set parental control, an email account is required. Microsoft will guide us through the entire process so it is not necessary to create it previously.
- First of all we must access the Windows configuration options through the keyboard shortcut Windows key + io or through the start menu by clicking on the cogwheel.
- Next, click on Accounts and within accounts in the section Family and other users.
- Then a new window will be displayed where it invites us to enter the email of the account that we want to add. As it is a new account and that it is also a minor, click on Create one for a minor.
- In the next window, we have to enter both the username as password that we want to use in the new account.
- Next we must enter the name and surname of the child together with the country of residence and the date of birth.
- In the next window, we must enter the username and password of the minor's account.
- As it is a minor's account, a notice will be displayed informing us that as it is a minor's account, needs the consent of the parents or legal guardian. In this case, we will select I am a parent or guardian.
- To associate the minor's account with our Microsoft account, with which we are going to monitor and / or limit the operation of the account, we must enter the username of our account along with the password.
- In the next window Microsoft invites us to give consent to Microsoft to create the account and the data that will be stored on its servers such as name, date of birth, email address ... At the bottom of the document, we must sign the document writing our name.
- Microsoft then invites us to allow the new account to log into non-Microsoft applications. If we limit this access, the minor will only be able to use applications published by Microsoft.
- Finally, the desired message will be displayed informing us that the account has been created successfully and that the minor's account is already available in the family group.
Now we have to establish the limitations that we believe appropriate in the account of the minor that we have created in our team. To do so we must click on Child protection.
The limitations of use and access of the minor's profile, we can create and / or modify them through the configuration options of Windows - Accounts - Family and other users and clicking on Manage Family Settings Online.
Set up parental controls in Windows
Once we have created the minor's profile, it will be displayed in the Accounts - Family and other users section. To establish the limitations of use, click on Manage family account online.
A web page will automatically open where we have to enter the account details of the parent or guardian. The reason for carrying out this process through a web page is so that all the changes we make are synchronized with all the devices where the minor's account is configured.
The first thing we must do to start showing the activity of the device associated with the account is connect a device to the account. If it is a Windows computer, we just have to log in to the computer for the first time. And if it is an Xbox, we must add the user's name to the console.
Family Safety, as Windows Parental Control is called, it is also available for Android (not for tablets) and iPhone an application that allows you to locate children through your mobile phone.
However, both platforms also integrate a parental control system that does not have the restrictions on the use of a third-party application, as is the case with this one, so, although it is a nuisance, it is better to use the parental control system of each operating system.
The first time we log into a Windows computer with the minor's account that we have created, we will be asked to enter the account password and will be invited to create a PIN code to protect access to the account. From this moment on, the minor's account displayed on Family Safety it will start logging your activity.
Now the time has come to know all the functions that Family Safety puts at our disposal for the minor to make responsible use of the equipment, use the applications recommended for their age, control the time they use the device ...
Through Family Safety we can:
- Screen time
- Try the Microsoft Family Safety app
- Activity report
- Content filters
- Driving safety
- Your family email
- Family calendar
- Family OneNote
- Additional
- Do you need more help?
To access the configuration options for the minor's account, we must click on the team name that is displayed just below the user's name. If you only use one team, the usage will be displayed and not the team name. It will be at this time that we will have to press to access the account configuration options.
General information about a minor's account
Through the first option available with Family Safety, we find the General Information tab. This tab shows us a summary of how we have configured the application, the time on the screen, the limitations ...
Screen Time. This section shows us a graph with the use of the device associated with the minor's account in the last 7 days with the average daily use. In addition, it also shows us the time elapsed since the last time you used it.
Applications and games. The Applications and Games section offers us the established age filter, a filter based on the date of birth and that we can change at any time. It also shows us the most used applications and the average daily use, allowing us to directly block the use of it.
Search and Web. In the Search and Web section, we find the terms searched through Bing (the only search engine available) together with the web pages that you have visited and the number of visits. In addition, it allows us to block the pages that we do not want you to visit.
Additional. If we regularly add money to our son's wallet to buy applications or games, in this section we can see both the money he has left and what he has spent it on.
Xbox online game. Through this function we can know at all times what time is passing in each application and establish limits of use or block the application directly.
Set screen time
This section shows a graph with the average daily usage device in a graph of the last 7 days of all associated devices, between computers and Xbox consoles.
If we want to know the details of use, that is, the time spent with each application, click on the section Applications and games. To establish a usage limit per application or block it so that you cannot use it, we will click on each application and then we will establish a time limit or we will block the application through the corresponding buttons.
If we want to establish a daily use of the equipment, from the main Screen Time page, we scroll to where the name of the equipment it uses is displayed and click on it to display the hours of use established natively.
To change the schedule of each day, we must click on the day and select from what time to what time you can use it and how many hours you can use it. During this entire period of time, you can only use it for the number of hours that we have configured.
Configure content filters in Windows
To filter the content accessed by the minor through the internet, we must click on the option Content filters. This option shows a list of all the web pages that you have visited in the last 7 days, along with the number of visits.
If we want to block some of these web pages, we just have to click on Block, located to the right of the web page shown in the list. As it is a minor's account, Microsoft activates the option by default Filter inappropriate searches and websites protecting the minor from adult content and enabling Safe Search with Bing.
If we want the content filter to work, we must use Microsoft Edge, since otherwise we will not be able to remotely manage the websites that our son visits.
By activating this filter, and ensuring that users use Edge, Windows blocks the use of other browsers, so we will make sure that our child does not use other browsers to visit adult pages or search for sensitive terms.
The Family Safety Content Filters option allows us to limit the number of pages you can visit to a list. Any other page that is not in the list that we have created will be automatically blocked by the browser.
It also allows us block certain web pages that we want our children not to visit through the Blocked sites option.
Look for your son
One of the few functionalities offered by the application for mobile devices, configuring only with the minor's account, allows us to locate the location of our child at any time. By clicking on the location that shows us the location, a map will be shown with the position of our son's smartphone.
If we configure the application with the parent's account, we will have access to the same information that we found through this web page, but without the options to modify the presets. If we want to modify it, we have to visit the web page from any browser.
When configuring the application with the name of our child we must access the configuration options since it is a function that allows locating the child it is natively disabled.
What can we do with Windows parental control
Depending on the age, it is more than likely that you are continually arguing with your child for the hours he spends on YouTube. If we are from users of social networks such as Instagram, TikTok or Facebook, we fully understand the satisfaction they produce in the mind.
Through Windows parental control, we can limit daily use of YouTube, for instance. We can also limit the use of certain applications such as Roblox, Minecraft or Fortnite.
From their own experience, the minor will quickly understand that they have a limited time to use the computer and / or certain games, because will make the most of the time available. What we must be clear about is that by explaining the reasons to the minor that oblige us to make this determination, it will be much easier to make them understand it than without giving any explanation.
These limits can be easily and quickly changed from the Safety Family website from any browser. When the set time of use is nearing its end, a message will be displayed on the screen informing the child.
In this way, if our child is just watching a movie or playing a game and we don't want to leave it halfway, we can slightly extend the limit of that for that particular day.