Last updated on November 17th, 2020 at 09:28 pm
Microsoft’s Next-Gen gaming consoles introduced a bunch of new useful features. One of those features is the new and improved Parental Control Settings, and now they’re more diverse than ever. With their diversity comes the complexity of implementing them and that is where this guide comes in to explain everything you need to know about how to set-up the new Parental Controls on Xbox Series X/S.
How to Set-up Parental Controls on Xbox Series X/S
The new Parental Control Settings include content restriction, screen time limit, overseeing purchases, privacy settings, and chat filters that can be customized to the smallest details according to your preferences.
The first thing that you need to do in order to apply any of these settings is to sign in to your Microsoft account.
Sign in to Xbox Series X/S
Signing in to your Microsoft account is in-fact the first thing that you should do after getting your hands on Xbox Series X/S. You can then set up your Xbox account using it after you’ve provided your email and phone number. That Xbox account will be then used to create accounts for your kids and keep them under surveillance.
To do so, go to the Xbox Home Menu and you’ll see an “Add New” option at the top left of the screen. However, make sure that you have some extra emails because each new profile requires a dedicated email. After you’ve created the required number of accounts, you can dive right into the Parental Control Settings.
How Content Restrictions Work
The content restriction settings ensure that your kids aren’t viewing any content which is inappropriate for their age. You can either provide the system with your kid’s age and it will automatically define restrictions according to that age or you can impose specific restrictions according to your own preference. To prevent your kids from discovering inappropriate or mature content over the internet, Microsoft facilitates parents with Web Filtering which as the name suggests, filters web content. You can apply these settings from either your Xbox or through browser.
To get to these settings through your Xbox, head to the Family Account Settings and select the account you want to edit. Under the Access Content tab you can either select an age limit or customize restrictions freely.
To get to these settings via browser, log in to your Microsoft account, select a profile you want to edit, and then head over to Content Restrictions. There you can set age limits and block mature websites/content under the Apps, Games, and Media tabs.
How to Manage Purchases
You can also manage your kid’s purchase, making sure they don’t drown you in debt buying FIFA Coins. You can check the “Ask a Parent” box under the Buy and Download Settings tab so that the kids cannot make a purchase without your permission. This option is located in the Xbox Privacy Settings tab. On the contrary, if you want to access this purchase option through the browser, just select the account you want to impose this restriction and under Content Restrictions, you’ll find the option to turn on adult approval for buying things.
How to Limit Screen Time
To ensure that your kids don’t spend an excessive amount of time in the virtual world of games, you can add screen time limits. You can set the time of day during which your kids can be in front of the screen. You can also set a total time limit, which once imposed will give notification on the screen so the kids know that the time is nearly over.
You can only set the Screen Time Limits when you log into your Microsoft Account via a browser. Once logged in, head over to the family page and you’ll see all of your kids’ accounts. Then select the screen time settings to set time limits for your kids.
Time limits for Windows PC can also be applied from this menu. You can set a single time span in which the kids can use either Xbox or PC or you can set different times for each one.
Adjust Privacy Settings
The privacy settings are probably the most customizable of the bunch. With the help of these settings, you can choose the people your kids can communicate with or play games with. You can also block unwanted people from reaching out to your kids. These settings can be accessed through both Xbox and browser.
In the case of Xbox, again go to the system settings, then to Family Settings, and select a profile. After selecting the profile, look for Communication and Multiplayer options.
Under this setting tab, you can choose if you want your kids to play cross-platform or not, since the majority of multiplayer games now allow cross-play between consoles. Just check if the “You can play with people outside of Xbox Live” is checked or not. If it is checked, it means your kids can play cross-platform multiplayer and vice versa. Under the same settings tab, you can choose the people who can chat or communicate with your kids. This setting is customizable to such a degree that you can choose the specific people your kids can talk to in a specific game. To apply chat settings, look for “You can communicate outside of Xbox Live with voice & text”.
If you don’t want any offensive word to appear in front of your kid you can also apply chat filters. You have four options to choose from in chat filters; friendly, medium, mature, and unfiltered. If you choose unfiltered, it’ll allow all kinds of messages and words to show up. On the contrary, if you choose friendly it’ll filter all the words that have even the slightest maturity in them.
In case you want to access these settings via browser, again go to the family settings and select the profile you want to edit. Then select the Privacy and Online Settings. Once there you can choose Adult, Teen or Children. If you don’t like the automatic settings you can always add custom settings.
Also, make sure to log out and then log in again from your kid’s account in order for all of these sets to be in effect.
And that’s all you need to know about the Xbox Series X/S Parental Controls.