My 7yo keeps sneaking YouTube after bedtime

Nov 261 min read

So I found out yesterday that my son has been waking up at like 11pm and watching YouTube on his iPad. He's been doing this for who knows how long. I thought I had parental controls set up but apparently he figured out the password somehow (I'm an idiot and used his birthdate). Now I'm paranoid about what he's been watching. Set up better controls last night but honestly feeling like I failed him here. Anyone else have kids who are sneaky with screens?

10 comments354 views

Comments(10)

RRob K.Regular1d ago

This is the scary part that nobody talks about - kids are weirdly good at figuring tech out. Mine got past screen time limits by just restarting the iPad enough times to reset the timer. Now everything is behind actual device-level encryption and he has zero access.

DDanny G.Regularjust now

He probably watched me type it in like 50 times lol. Kids see things once and remember it forever.

PPatrick W.Regularjust now

The 11pm thing concerns me more than the password honestly. Is he having trouble sleeping or just bored? Might be worth asking his pediatrician about the sleep issue rather than just treating it as a behavior thing.

PPaul T.Regular42m ago

Don't be paranoid about parental controls being cracked - be paranoid about the SLEEP LOSS. A 7yo waking at 11pm multiple nights is dangerous. That blue light is also tanking his melatonin. Physical removal of the device from the bedroom is the answer, not a better password.

VVic H.Regular21h ago

lol 11pm YouTube sessions with a 7yo is rough. First thing - change that password to something random he can't guess. Birthdate was risky move. Then go nuclear on screen time settings in actual parental controls, not just app password.

CChris R.Regularjust now

You're not an idiot, tons of people do this. The sneaking at 11pm is the concerning part though. Is he getting enough daytime activity? Sometimes kids wake up and sneak screen time because they're not tired enough or bored.

LLiam S.Regularjust now

This happened with my 8yo too. Parental controls aren't childproof, they're young-kid-proof. Once they hit like 7-8 they start reverse-engineering stuff. I switched to: (1) taking the iPad at 8pm physically, (2) using random password I don't tell him, (3) checking screen time weekly. Now he knows it's pointless to sneak.

AArchie K.Regular22h ago

You're not an idiot, birthdate passwords are a common dad move. But yeah you need to lock this down different. What device? iPad has pretty solid built-in controls if you set them right in Settings > Screen Time.

LLeo R.New Dad1d ago

Wait how did a 7yo figure out a password? That's actually impressive and also terrifying.

NNate H.Regular16h ago

Birthday as password lmao that's actually genius on his part not gonna lie. Change it NOW to something he can't guess. Also - why does a 7yo have iPad access at 11pm??? That's the bigger issue. Kids need sleep more than screen time.