In March, we announced Microsoft Family Safety—a new app to help you protect what matters most with digital and physical safety. Today, we are excited to start rolling out the launch of a limited preview of the app on iOS and Android.
With families working and learning from home, many of us are spending more time on our computers and phones and are looking for ways to ensure our loved ones are safe. Microsoft Family Safety helps you to facilitate a dialogue with your kids about the time they are spending on their devices and the type of content they are viewing. The app provides transparency on where everyone is spending time online and allows you to create flexible schedules to carve out more time for things like online learning. Additionally, it helps you stay connected even when you’re apart with location sharing. Our team is committed to bringing you additional physical safety features in the coming months, like safe driving, so as we go back to a new normal you can help protect your family across your whole life.
Find the balance that is right for your family. Give your kids independence to learn and explore, while setting boundaries that help them make good choices. Kids can see the same activity reports their parents to see, so everyone can be part of the conversation. Additionally, with Microsoft Family Safety, family members can manage their data and information and who it is shared with. We work around the clock to help protect your information and will not sell your data.
Let’s take a closer look as some of the features you can try in the preview of Family Safety:
- Develop healthy digital habits: Activity reporting
Get information about your family’s activity so you can have a conversation about what your kids are doing online and on their devices. View screen time, top websites visited, and terms kids are searching for online.2,3 Receive an email summary each week to help facilitate a dialogue on healthy digital choices and begin developing good habits from a young age.
- Find screen time balance: Screen time limits
Set screen time limits across Windows and Xbox devices. Or if your kids will be on devices longer for things like online learning, you can set limits on specific apps or games instead.2 Now when you say only one hour of a certain game, that really means one hour of that game—whether that’s being played on a Windows PC, Xbox, or Android phone. And if they run out of screen time, they can ask for more. You have the choice to add more time or not based on what is right for your family.
- Choose the right content: Content controls
Create a safe space for your kids to explore online. Set healthy boundaries with web and search filters to block mature content and set browsing to kid-friendly websites on Microsoft Edge.3 Get notified when your kids want to download a more mature app or game from the Microsoft Stores with age limits, keeping you in the know and helping to avoid surprises.5 Family Safety provides you with the tools to begin talking about the type of content that is right for your kids.
- Locate your loved ones: Location sharing
Stay connected even when you’re apart. See loved ones on a map with location sharing.4 Plus, save places they visit the most, like home, work, or school, to know where family members are at glance. With stay-at-home orders and restrictions on mobility currently in place, it is important to know where your loved ones are when they are not at home—for example, if your teenager got side-tracked while running to the grocery store and ended up at a friend’s house. And as we get back to a new normal, keeping in touch with your loved ones will be even more important.
Here’s how to join the preview:
For users, who have already expressed interest, we will be reaching out with instructions to download the preview.
We have limited availability for additional users on Android and iOS and invite you to sign up. As a participant in the preview, you gain early access to the app and get to help shape the product by sharing feedback about your experience.
Microsoft Family Safety is best when used together. We are looking for families with children of all ages to join the preview. We ask that users participating in the preview actively provide feedback to help us learn from your experience. You can send feedback in the app by shaking your device or tapping on the menu > Help and feedback.
Comments
Post a Comment