What Is the Bark App?
As a parent, you want to make sure that your child is safe and happy. There are many dangers in the digital world that kids face on their phones and computers every day. That’s why we’re so excited about Bark – an app designed with your children’s safety in mind!
With the Bark app, you will be able to monitor 30+ of the most popular apps and social media platforms for signs of danger, like cyberbullying, drug use, suicidal thoughts, or sexual predators. You can also filter out any content that may not be appropriate for younger audiences. This way, your child won’t have access to anything they shouldn’t see. We know how hard it can be to keep up with everything your child is doing online, but with Bark, it just got easier!
How Does It Work?
The Bark app monitors text messages, emails, and social networks for potential dangers to your child, so you, as a busy parent, can save time and gain peace of mind. Parents often worry about what their child is doing online. While it’s impossible to look them over the shoulder all the time, Bark offers a solution for parents who want to know more about what’s going on in their children’s online world.
The Bark app lets parents monitor their children’s activities without policing them. The idea behind this is for parents to keep an eye on what they’re doing so nothing potentially harmful or inappropriate goes unnoticed. It does it while respecting your time and your child’s privacy by only surfacing potential concerns.
Barks AI-based algorithms analyze all activities and send notifications to parents via their preferred communication channels if something seems to be as it should not be. It also includes recommendations for how to respond to issues. It is beneficial to parents since Bark’s monitoring allows users to browse their children’s activities without sorting through it all manually.
It’s impossible to read every email, post, and text message. You can adjust the sensitivity and the type of alerts you want. Although no full locator service is available, Bark does have a check-in feature that lets you request your children’s location at any time.
Manage Screen Time And Web Filtering
For parents, setting clear rules for how much screen time their children are allowed and what they can do when they are online is one of the essential tools. By using Bark, parents can control screen time, decide on a time for internet downtime, and set bedtimes for weekdays before school and for weekends when more screen time could be allowed. You can set up different profiles for each child in your household. Set rules around when your kids can use their devices and which websites they can visit.
Get Your Kids to Accept the Bark app
Accountability today has received a bad reputation. Many people confuse their freedom with being able to do whatever they want. Many believe that when we reach a certain age, we should have the freedom to do whatever we like whenever we wish.
We all know, however, that this is neither healthy nor beneficial. Children are no different. When it comes to teaching your children about accountability, you should model that behavior yourself.
That’s why ALL of your devices and computers should be under the Bark umbrella.
It isn’t uncommon for adults to see or hear things in life that aren’t uplifting. Furthermore, since we use parental control software ourselves, our children are more likely to accept it. Thus, we create an environment where the entire family is accountable without singling out a few members as untrustworthy.
Children have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders, and you need to teach them about accountability so you can walk with them as they learn from their mistakes instead of being the judging voice when they make a mistake. From a young age, teach your children to be accountable for their actions, which will undoubtedly benefit them later. But accountability is not the same as control; this is often confused by parents.
Bark app vs. Competition
Of course, there are other parental control apps. They each have their strengths and weaknesses. Some of them have features that might even work a little better than Barks. But Bark is considered by most as the best parental control app for overall monitoring without real weaknesses.
Bark has developed a solution backed by research in collaboration with youth advisors, child psychologists, digital media experts, and law enforcement professionals. It has some unique features you won’t find in other apps.
- Artificial Intelligence saves you a lot of time because you don’t have to set up filters manually.
- Parents receive alerts about any concerning interactions that Bark finds in texts, photos, or videos. In addition, whenever there is a potential risk, you will receive an email and text message alert.
- Another unique feature is that child psychologists provide suggestions for how to respond to issues.
- A dashboard you can access to get an overview of your child’s internet usage. You can see how much time they spend online, which websites they visit, and how many cyber threats have been detected.
Supported Platforms
- iOS
- Android
- Chromebook
- Amazon devices
Installing and setting up Bark on iPhone and Android devices is relatively straightforward. You do not need a PC or another device to configure the app on Android. Connecting iPhones, iPads, and other iOS devices, a computer is required for the initial setup.
Pricing
Bark offers a package for unlimited devices, children, and monitored apps without limits on the number of tracked activities, data transfer, or other restrictions. There are two options to choose from: a monthly fee of $14, or an annual fee of $99, saving you 41%.
If you’re a new user, you get a 7-day free trial. And, of course, you can purchase a month-to-month plan at a starting point. Then, if you like the service, you can continue with an annual membership, which is most cost-effective. They also have an entry-level version of their app called Bark Jr. Parents can only manage screen time, filter websites, and track location with the Bark Jr app. The price for Bark Jr is $5/ month or $49/year.
