At&t secure family

It is not spying on kids. It is called parenting in a not so friendly world.

As a parent myself, I'm not going to let that statement go.

This is parenting: if you're concerned about where your children go and what they're doing, you have a conversation with them about consent and privacy. You tell them you're worried about them, and want to know where they are. You tell them you're paying for the phones they carry and have the right to use this feature. Assure them it's only because of your concern for their safety.

This is not parenting: trying to install software on your kids' phones so you can see where they're going without them knowing about it. That's spying.

I wish that there was a useful vehicle to actually communicate to AT&T the almost universal dissatisfaction with this app from previous users of Smart Limits and Family Map; but I have looked and the corporate firewall is not to be breached...and the only industry publication reviews out there (besides the terrible app store reviews) are merely the  AT&T press release.

AT&T will almost certainly lose some customers because of this (I will be ultimately be one of them but continue to hope they will reissue what was the best parental control app of anyone - Smart Limits); but will not lose enough customers to care, and will likely never know or care at a corporate level what a crappy product Secure Family actually is.

I’ve given AT&T more than a month to fix this.
Taking all 5 of our cellular lines to Verizon this Saturday, after 20 years with AT&T.
Tone deaf.

Go for it. You'll find Verizon's Family Locator service works exactly the same as AT&T's, requiring an app to be installed on the phone and sending a message to the phone letting the user know it's being tracked.

Weirdo

You are not a good parent. Blowing your cover? You shouldn’t have to spy on your kids 

I agree. I know there's a "don't tell me how to raise my kids" attitude out there, but spying on your kids is creepy and wrong. Shows a total lack of trust which probably goes both ways.. And what happens when you catch them doing something? Parent: "Ah-ha, you've been taking drugs!" Kid: "How do you know that?" Parent: "Because I've been spying on you!" Forget ever having that child's trust ever again.

@QuarryRye 

I think I get it now. You worked on this new app. The ratings and reviews on the App Store are in the toilet and you're catching flak.

You probably worked on the apps for the other carriers, too.

and @URAControlFreak you are obviously not an adult, but when you grow up and have tweens and teens you'll understand.

As for me, I have no need to "spy" on my children. I do, however, need a way to set up schedules so that calls, texts, and internet access go off at certain times except to contact me (sleep, during school, etc.). This "upgrade" does not allow for that, and turning off the data through the MyATT app still allows calls and texts to go through.

Physically confiscating their phones every day is far more antagonistic.

Get off your high horse and go fix the stupid app. 

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@tj00868 wrote:

@QuarryRye 

I think I get it now. You worked on this new app. The ratings and reviews on the App Store are in the toilet and you're catching flak.

You probably worked on the apps for the other carriers, too.

Why when people don’t agree, it must be because they have a personal stake?  I’m sure @QuarryRye  does not.  This app was created because people wanted what Verizon had.  Of course Verizon wanted what At&t and T-mo had, so it’s all circular silliness

 

and @URAControlFreak you are obviously not an adult, but when you grow up and have tweens and teens you'll understand.

 

As for me, I have no need to "spy" on my children. I do, however, need a way to set up schedules so that calls, texts, and internet access go off at certain times except to contact me (sleep, during school, etc.). This "upgrade" does not allow for that, and turning off the data through the MyATT app still allows calls and texts to go through.

Physically confiscating their phones every day is far more antagonistic.

Get off your high horse and go fix the stupid app. 

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I don’t know how, but a managed to raise my sons through this cell phone era without any of these apps.  Mostly because I loath paying for anything when I could just do the difficult job and be a mom, not a friend.  Cell phones had to be outside the bedroom door by 8, no screens, and WiFi could be unplugged.  Any kid who lacked the self control to not use devices when he shouldn’t, lost it for a period of time.   Any rasher of ‘antagonistic ‘ behavior would have resulted in no screens for extended lengths of time.   Each kid made mistakes once, and learned from it.   They got phones taken away, data shut off, or grounded.  I was always a ‘no means no’ mom, so they never doubted the rules.  

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@tj00868 wrote:

@QuarryRye 

I think I get it now. You worked on this new app. The ratings and reviews on the App Store are in the toilet and you're catching flak.

You probably worked on the apps for the other carriers, too.

 

and @URAControlFreak you are obviously not an adult, but when you grow up and have tweens and teens you'll understand.

 

As for me, I have no need to "spy" on my children. I do, however, need a way to set up schedules so that calls, texts, and internet access go off at certain times except to contact me (sleep, during school, etc.). This "upgrade" does not allow for that, and turning off the data through the MyATT app still allows calls and texts to go through.

Physically confiscating their phones every day is far more antagonistic.

Get off your high horse and go fix the stupid app. 

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@tj00868 

Personally there are apps out there like net nanny that do what you want but you will pay for it.  Those maybe going by the way of the doodoo bird to if apple and google keep working on their own and they work better.  Apple does have ways to control apps and things as does google.