Net Nanny Parental Control App Review

Net Nanny's chief selling point is its powerful filtering capabilities. In addition to a good selection of preexisting categories, parents can input their own specific filters as well. The app's ability to determine the context in which particular words are used is noteworthy since it allows words that may be innocuous in some contexts (such as recipes for cooking chicken breasts) but are indicators of adult content in other contexts. Unlike older versions of Net Nanny, the latest iteration has a location tracker that allows parents to see where their children are in real time. This is an excellent addition to the app.

Net Nanny's parental control interface allows Mom or Dad to Filter adult content in real-time, block pornography, receive alerts of online activity, and help children manage their screen time.

Parents can also set the app to send them alerts about blocked or warned content, an apps summary that lists whatever apps have been used, and search history details (search terms and search engine). Daily screen time usage stats are also included.

Net Nanny provides a mobile Parent App and Web Parent Dashboard accessible from anywhere parents can make changes and see reports anywhere and from any device. Both these options also include the Net Nanny Family Feed that shows a real-time feed of family events including; Internet Searches, App installs, Blocked and Alerted content, App Usage summaries, and technology-related parenting tips. The Net Nanny apps also include access to the App Advisor that gives parent-friendly reviews and descriptions of mobile Apps.

This is a reasonably robust set of features and controls, but it's not exhaustive​. For example, no geofencing is offered. And while texting apps can be blocked, there doesn't appear to be any feature that surveils a child's chat conversations and reports the contents of the chat to the parent. Nor is there any way to block particular people or accounts from contacting the child by phone or text message.

Net Nanny provides different plans depending on the amounts of devices a consumer wishes to cover: one PC, five devices (PC and mobile) or 20 devices (PC and mobile). The company does not appear to offer a free trial period anymore. The 20-device option is very economical on a per-device basis.

Net Nanny is one of the few parental control apps that specifically works with Kindle Fire devices. It also covers the major platforms of Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. The company has an A+ on the BBB, but no page on Trustpilot. Its customer service hours are unfortunately limited to nine hours a day Monday through Friday, with no service available on weekends but are one of the few Parental Control companies that offer live technical support. The company does not offer a live chat option for support but does offer email support at support@netnanny.com. Consumers can also contact the company by filling out a web form on the website.