All parents work hard to keep our kids safe. However, sometimes unexpected things happen. Imagine if your child finds themselves alone at school or at the soccer field waiting for their ride and starts to feel unsafe. Or maybe in an emergency a teen takes an Uber and feels uncomfortable with their Uber driver. Or maybe they are at a new friend’s house and you need to pick them up, but they’re not answering your texts or calls. Today’s GKIS article covers several tech remedies that you may not have been aware of.
Fake Phone Calls on TikTok
Although we’d like to think our child would never feel unsafe enough to need a fake phone call, TikTok users think otherwise. Search “fake phone call safe” on TikTok and you’ll see a video that stages the sounds of a real phone call conversation.
Typically in these fake phone call videos, the person recorded in the conversation is saying that they are expecting you and are aware of what you are doing. They are designed to make the listener appear as though they are real-time connected to their parent.
Possible uses for this video are if your child is in an Uber or somebody they don’t feel comfortable with is giving them a ride home or if they feel unsafe while walking home or waiting for a ride alone. Not only does the fake call take the pressure off of them from talking to the stranger=, but it also appears as though they are being tracked for location and situation.
Emergency SOS
Emergency SOS is a free default feature on your iPhone. By clicking your power button five times, you can trigger an automatic 911 call within three seconds.
How to Check if Your Child has this on Their iPhone
Go to Settings > Emergency SOS > Select On to turn on the call with the side button switch, then enable Auto Call.
To test it, click your power button five times and wait for a loud alarm to sound. Of course, be sure to click it off before the 911 call goes through.
Find My Friends
Another great way to know where your child is at all times is the Find My Friends app on the iPhone. With this app, you can check where your child is at all times.
Find My Friends comes as a default feature of an iPhone. To use it, you simply have to make sure you have clicked the Share My Location feature under Settings > Privacy > Location Services > Share My Location.
Life360 “Feel free, together”
Similar to FindMyFriends, Life360 is a tracking device for Apple phones and Android phones that allows you to sync your family into a private, invite-only circle.
Life360 has three membership levels with different features:
Free:
Location Sharing
Battery Monitoring
Location ETA
Place Alerts – notifications when family members come and go from your most frequent Places
History – a quick view of your family member’s drive a location data for the last 48 hours
Help Alert
In-App Chat
Crash Detection
Plus:
All of the above plus Crime Reports
Driver Protec:
All of the above plus Emergency Dispatch, Roadside Assistance, and Driver Report
Personally, my mom and I have always shared our locations on the FindMyFriends app because of our almost 3-hour drive from one another. Once I discovered this app, I immediately made her download it because of all the unique features. However, not everybody is a fan of this tracking app. Search “Life360” on TikTok and you’ll see teens insisting that their lack of privacy and spying parents have ruined their lives.
Recently Dr. B says her clients have reported that teens are giving it one-star in the Apple store hoping that Apple will respond by removing the app. GKIS suggests you use discretion and offer older teens their privacy if they ask for it.
Emergency Whistle App
This kind of app can be found in the app store by searching up “Emergency Whistle.” Choose your favorite and download it!
In this app, you can access a digital whistle that activates a loud and alarming sound while also causing your phone flashlight to flash off and on. This acts as a physical whistle nicknamed a “rape whistle.”
Growing up I always carried one of these whistles. But now I’ve found this app which allowed me to feel safe for those late nights on campus as I walk back to my car.
Siren GPS
Cell service is not always the best. This app offers a “panic button” service which when you press it you are instantly connected to 911 services.[1] It will give emergency personnel your exact coordinates with or without a good cell connection.
I remember a time in middle school where my mom was running late after I got out of drill team practice. I sat at school alone for a bit wondering when she would show. Worried, I began to walk home on my own on an unfamiliar path that was deserted. Looking back at that memory, I wish I would’ve had an app like this one just in case something happened. Luckily, I made it home safe and sound!
ICE Medical Standard App
With the ICE app, “The World’s #1 Emergency Medical App,” your vital statistics like blood type, allergies, medical conditions, and medications will appear on your Lock Screen Display Overlay.[2] That way emergency personnel has potentially life-saving information for appropriate medical care.
Medical ID App
Similar to the ICE Medical Standard App, you can use the Medical ID app on both Android and Apple smart devices. It displays an emergency medical card on the lock screen of the user’s smartphone while also allowing to navigation through this screen to get to a list of emergency contacts.
Another great feature of this app is that you are capable of sending SMSs of your location. There is also a function where you are able to send GPS tracking to designated contacts. Several profiles can be saved on this device for those who have larger families.[3]
Although every parent does their best to ensure their child’s safety, parents can’t be with their kids 24/7. Thankfully with the help of these apps, you can have the reassurance that your child safe when you are not around.
Special thanks to Danielle Rivera for researching and co-writing this article. If you liked the article, you’re interested in learning more tips on how to get yourself and your child prepared with great safety tools check out the Connected Family Course on the GKIS website where you will be able to create a family understanding of why these apps are important for everyone to have on their phones.
TikTok is a trendy, popular social media app that is controversial amongst parents. On the one hand, explicit language, attention-seeking trends, and cyberbullying on the app give TikTok the potential to be harmful. But kids and teens love it, anxious to join and follow the latest trends, memes, and creators. Like every app, it is important to consider the potential benefits TikTok can offer, not just the dangers. Many TikTok creators take advantage of the app’s popularity to provide inspiration and education to its adolescent audience. If you’ve decided to allow your teens access to TikTok, GKIS has identified some influencers your family may enjoy.
Who’s on TikTok?
Like YouTube and other social media platforms, TikTok users form communities based on popular trends like cooking, makeup, education, and wildlife. While we don’t think of apps like TikTok as a learning resource, many TikTok creators have dedicated their page to making teen-friendly, educational videos that can help your teen learn new things in a fun, accessible way.
Before You Start
As we mentioned in our GKIS Sensible Parents Guide to Tik Tok, it is recommended that kids be over the age of 13 before using TikTok due to its explicit language and content. Also, we strongly advise that you implement our free GKIS Connected Family Agreement before you allow your child a mobile device. With two versions available for kids and teens, our agreement spells out just what you should cover to help keep you family members safer online. All you have to do to get your free agreement delivered directly to your email by entering your name and email address on the GKIS home page. No purchase necessary and, if it’s not for you, you can unsubscribe at any time.
Meet Our Favorite Creators
For this article, we tried to find creators who have a relatively clean act for a teen audience. Please review these creators and decide for yourself whether they are good fits for your family.
Cooking
In the cooking community, creator @salt_to_taste has amassed over 1 million followers with his cooking videos and recipes. With easy recipes made with everyday ingredients and simple directions, this page is a great place for teens to get inspired to start experimenting in the kitchen. Salt to Taste makes a variety of foods, from snacks to smoothies to simple American and East Asian dishes. This creator has been active for almost a year and has been recently nominated for a Shorty Award in the food category. This creator does not seem to use inappropriate language and does not seem to do sponsorships.
Makeup
In the makeup community, creator @mariasgoldenmakeup is known for her bold eye looks and makeup tutorials. Though fairly new to TikTok, Maria has already gained over 61,000 followers with videos showing how she achieves her beautiful makeup looks as well as the products she uses to achieve them. Maria’s page can offer inspiration for teens who want to try their hand at makeup and achieve specific looks. Her looks can be used for everyday makeup and special occasions. She has done some sponsored posts but is transparent about what products are being advertised, using the hashtag #ad to indicate a sponsorship.
Nutrition
In the educational community, there are a few creators who have gained popularity for their educational TikToks in various subjects. In nutritional education, creator @sarahgracemeck, with over 149,000 followers, creates educational TikToks correcting various health myths and promoting tips on healthy eating. In our culture, we are obsessed with being thin and restricting what we eat, and this message unfortunately gets pushed on teens the most. Sarah does a great job using her background as a dietician to spread the message of healthy eating in a nonjudgmental, positive way. Sarah is passionate about spreading accurate information and debunking various unhealthy dieting trends and myths. It does not seem that Sarah offers sponsored content.
Science
In science education, creator @chemteacherphil is a popular user with a background as a high school chemistry teacher. Phillip has amassed over 1.3 million followers on TikTok with his videos exhibiting different chemical reactions and explaining their processes. The reactions he creates in his videos are fascinating to watch, and the information he gives can be useful to any high school student taking a chemistry class. Phillip does not seem to use explicit language or audios in his videos or do sponsorships.
Language
In language education, creator @fresajapomex is a popular multilingual creator who publishes videos in Spanish. With over 2.5 million followers, this creator does a variety of content from vlogs to comedy skits to food reviews. This creator, who goes by Sony on TikTok, has an energetic and kind personality and has a great sense of humor. Her parents are Mexican and Japanese, and therefore she speaks both languages as well as English. As a former Spanish student, one of the ways I improved my Spanish skills was consuming media in my target language. Sony’s content can be a great tool to help your teens improve their skills in a different language in a fun way. Sony does not seem to do sponsored content.
Wildlife
In the wildlife community, The Urban Rescue Ranch, the organization behind the page @ostrichplug, recently joined TikTok in an effort to show the work they do raising animals in an urban area. Their content shows their workers handling a variety of animals like frogs, possums, ostriches, pigs, and most recently, chickens. The creators often include their animals in fun, comedic skits and do frequent updates on the development of a few of their younger animals. This is a fun page for teens to view the different responsibilities of owning animals, and may even be inspired to go volunteer for an organization like the Urban Rescue Ranch themselves. This page does not seem to use any explicit language or audios and also does not seem to do sponsorships.
Fun with Coffee
Lastly, a popular creator among GKIS interns is @morgandrinkscoffee. Morgan is a college student who works as a barista for her local coffee shop, and she has gained over 2.2 million followers since joining in 2019. Her content mainly consists of the work she does as a barista, showing how she makes certain drinks, her day to day responsibilities, and some funny skits on her experience in the food industries. For teens who may be experiencing their first jobs in food services, Morgan’s content can show that it’s possible to enjoy the work that you do, but it also lets teens have a laugh at some of the shared struggles most of us have faced while working in customer services. Morgan is transparent in her sponsorships, labeling her sponsored content with the hashtag #ad.
Making TikTok Safer
As discussed in our previous TikTok article, it can be difficult to control the content suggested by the TikTok algorithm. But with careful decisions on who you allow your teen to follow, TikTok will suggest better, safer content that teens will love and parents can trust. Though it’s important to be cautious of the dangers of TikTok, with a little research, finding teen-friendly creators can help make the app safer and more fun for everyone.
Thanks to Alexandra Rosas-Ruiz for her research and help with writing this article. Want to learn more about how to manage the risks of the internet for your teen? Check out Dr. Bennett’s latest book, “Screen Time in the Meantime.” With a quick read (or listen because it is also offered in audio), you can learn creative, sensible, and family-tested parenting strategies to help protect your teen both online and offline.
I’m the mom psychologist who will help you GetKidsInternetSafe.
Onward to More Awesome Parenting,
Tracy S. Bennett, Ph.D.
Mom, Clinical Psychologist, CSUCI Adjunct Faculty
With more pressures at school and with friends, middle school can be awkward, scary, and lonely. Middle school is also when many tweens and teens onboard social media. Although social media is a fun way to keep up with friends and follow special interests, it has also been proven to increase insecurities and make kids feel left out and excluded. Cyberbullying is not uncommon and can lead to depression and anxiety. Insecure about their looks, teenagers are the perfect target for online beauty gurus and product marketing. Are beauty videos innocent instructional fun or high-tech marketing? Today’s GKIS article covers the beauty guru craze on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok and how they trick us into buying expensive and unnecessary beauty products.
What is a beauty guru?
Beauty gurus are social media celebrities who create images and videos that offer makeup and hairstyling tutorials, skincare reviews, and fashion advice. They are popular on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook.
Millennials (those born between 1980 and 1995) and Generation Z (those born between 1996 and 2015) are the targeted populations for beauty gurus.
Tweens, teens, and young adults spend an average of 11.3 hours on YouTube each week.
60% of them follow YouTube celebrities on social media.
Nearly a third of teens ages 13 to 17 prefer YouTube celebrities over movie or TV celebrities.
As of 2015, there were approximately 45.3 billion views on YouTube for beauty videos alone. [1]
Each month, 50 million people watch over 1.6 billion minutes of beauty guru content. [2]
Why are beauty gurus so popular?
Developmental changes during adolescence make teens perfect targets for beauty marketing. As kids develop and mature, they are getting used to maturing bodies and also switch attachment focus from parents to peers.
To attract their tribe, teens focus on their looks and often believe that others frequently watch and judge them. Child psychologist David Elkind coined this developmental phenomenon imaginary audience.
Is a judging audience imaginary? After all, the hundreds of social media selfies and YouTube videos teens view each day fuel the idea that everybody is watching, scrutinizing, and judging.
Teens are also attracted to the fame and influence of YouTube celebrities. Fifty-six percent of teen subscribers aspire to be a YouTube star. [3] Beauty gurus are particularly admired because they are often more relatable than polished celebrities like Kylie Jenner or Angeline Jolie. They’re “normal girls” just like everyone else, right?
Videos Shot for Profit
High subscriber numbers mean high profits. Although beauty videos appear to be spontaneously self-produced, informal chats into the camera, they aren’t. Most teens would be surprised to learn that these videos are expertly produced with scripting, expensive cameras and sound equipment, professional lighting, digital filtering and enhancements, and extensive editing. Newly created video editing software offers filters that enhance the skin and hide imperfections.
Beauty Box Video is an example of a digital enhancement software product. “This early-generation video plugin automatically identifies skin tones and creates a mask that limits the smoothing effect to just the skin areas…[It’s] Powerful, Easy, Real-time skin retouching for video” (website product description). With retouching software and filters, beauty gurus lead their audience to believe that their flawless skin is the result of a skincare item or a makeup product available for purchase rather than photography, video, and editing tricks. [4]
Some beauty Youtubers are not even amateurs. They are professional makeup artists or stylists. Some Youtuber celebrities may have started innocently making videos, but when subscriber numbers rise, advertisers offer attractive incentives to better sell. For example, Youtuber Michelle Phan was initially endorsed by Lancôme and now has her own makeup line called EM Cosmetics. Her brand makes millions of dollars a year.
Fake Friends and Confidants
YouTube beauty gurus intentionally create a false sense of intimacy in their videos that appeal to a lonely generation of young people who are captive audiences to their screens. Intimate video titles such as “Get ready with me” or “Storytime” offer the viewer a false sense of friendship with the Youtuber. [5]
Although teens may feel entertained and satisfied with learning, hours of watching may also contribute to their dissatisfaction and loneliness. Despite the teen’s best efforts, they will never be able to attain the professionally produced look of the beautiful Youtuber. The most popular beauty gurus are very attractive to begin with. Youtubers with average looks rarely get views and endorsement deals. The prettier the Youtuber, the more brand deals they get, and the more discouraged teens get sold on expectations they can’t achieve.
Compare and Despair
Many teens look to beauty gurus as role models. Unfortunately, beauty gurus rarely encourage their audience to explore interests outside of beauty and fashion.
Instructional beauty videos reinforce gender stereotypes that our worth is based on beauty, which requires time, skill, and money to achieve and maintain. These stereotypes are reflected in filter features that reflect Western beauty biases. We covered an example of this in our GKIS article, Beauty Filters Don’t Embrace Brown Beauty: The Rise of Colorism.
Also disturbing is how many beauty gurus discuss their plastic surgery and cosmetic procedures on camera. Browse “I got injections,” and you will see dozens of videos produced by surgically enhanced influencers with millions of views each.
In Xiaxue’s video titled, “Plastic surgery questions answered!” she discusses her nose job and double eyelid surgery as if it’s an everyday, simple get. Surgical transformation is a dangerous proposal to a lonely, self-conscious teen who has spent hours mesmerized by enhanced marketers slowly grooming her desperation to be reinvented. Anxieties inspired by this type of content can lead to mental illnesses like body dysmorphic disorder and eating disorders. [6]
Popular YouTube celebrities boast large followings, high influence, and big profits off of vulnerable teens. A top beauty influencer, Wayne Goss, blew the whistle on this misleading phenomenon in his video, “WARNING. YOU’RE BEING LIED TO.” In his illustration, Wayne shows his audience what his face looks like before and after using skin retouching software. But knowledge doesn’t always cut through compulsive video viewing habits. [7]
What you can do:
Recognize that worth is more than skin deep and emphasize this among friends and family. Provide opportunities for intellectual, spiritual, and character growth. Value substance.
Be a good role model. Makeup-free days and clean, natural living balance special, glitzy occasions.
Parents can filter streaming video content with screen safety management tools like those offered in our Screen Safety Toolkit. The more developed your child’s personality and self-concept, the more resilient they’ll be in the face of relentless marketing.
Educate kids about the risks and benefits of watching beauty guru videos. Make sure they understand that beauty videos are meticulously edited to make a profit from unsuspecting targets.
Help each other know that we don’t need to alter our appearance to be genuinely loved and accepted.
Monitor and limit how often you or the people you care about view beauty guru content. Take notice if you or those you care about are showing compulsive viewing habits or are negatively affected by the content they are consuming.
Teach balanced, healthy, and fun beauty activities like giving to others, gratefulness, kindness, a clean diet, and satisfying fitness. Beauty radiates from within, not from ten-minute ombré lips and $50 shimmer. Sometimes it’s important to dare to go bare.
Thank you to CSUCI Intern, Mara Pober for providing parents with information about the beauty gurus of Youtube. For more parenting support to dull the influence of high-earning, big-influence celebrities like Kim Kardashian, check out the GKIS article What Parents Need to Cover About Kim Kardashian’s Un-covering.
I’m the mom psychologist who helps you GetKidsInternetSafe.
