AT&T Secure Family Review: App’s Features and Alternatives [2024]

AT&T Secure Family is a parental control app that helps parents manage their kids’ devices. It’s designed for AT&T users, as it’s one of the top telecommunication companies in America. The AT&T Secure Family app allows you to manage your kid’s screen time, find family members, and even block inappropriate content.

AT&T Secure Family offers excellent features, but it has pros and cons. One of its disadvantages is that it won’t help you if you want to track your kid’s phone without them knowing. However, you can monitor almost everything on a child’s phone with third-party trackers. Here’s our review of the best trackers without permission:

Secure Family App Pros & Cons

Let’s start with the advantages and disadvantages of the AT&T Secure Family. They are listed below:

What Is AT&T Secure Family

AT&T Secure Family is a parental control app for smartphones and tablets using the AT&T wireless network. Secure Family offers kids protection, and parents control. This app allows you to track the location of family members, see their location history, and block inappropriate apps. The Secure Family app can set time limits, block app purchases, and pause internet access.

The Secure Family app has an alert-based system. You will receive notifications when your kid enters or leaves a location, such as home or school. The app covers a comprehensive list of features to help parents monitor their children’s devices.

How to Use AT&T Secure Family App

You can expect to use these features on the AT&T Secure Family app.

Location Tracking – Scores 9/10

If you need to find any family member, you can do so on an interactive map. You’ll need an AT&T wireless account, AT&T Prepaid, or US wireless service from another provider.

If you have an AT&T wireless account, all you need is to pair your device with your child’s device. You must install the Secure Family companion app on your child’s phone for AT&T Prepaid wireless customers or US wireless service from a different provider.

Secure Family will use cell phone towers and your child’s smartphone GPS to track their location.

Here’s how to use the location tracking feature on AT&T Secure Family:

1. Open the Secure Family app and find your child from the list of family members.
2. Find your child’s location on the interactive map.
   
3. Tap on the map to get details of the specific location.
4. Tap on the Refresh icon under the map to get the updated location of your child.

Schedule email or text alerts to get location notifications.

1. Select the desired family member from the list of family members.
2. Scroll down to location alerts and tap Scheduled Alerts.
   
3. Click Add an Alert. Set the desired time and date. Tap SAVE.

You can set arrival and departure alerts by going to Location Alerts> Arrival/Departure Alerts> Add Alert and then entering the location and the address. Then, turn Arrival and/or Departure Alerts ON and tap SAVE.

Location History – Scores 9/10

You can see the location history of a family member for the past seven days.

1. Open the Secure Family dashboard and select the family member.
2. Tap anywhere on the map to see the map-detail screen.
3. Scroll down on the map-detail screen to view the location history of that family member.

Does AT&T Secure Family Notify the Person Being Tracked?

Yes, AT&T will notify the family member once their phone is located. In addition, AT&T will send an SMS to the companion app users that they are being tracked by the primary phone number.

Parental Control – Scores 8/10

AT&T Secure Family parental controls can limit screen time and filter web and app use.

Here’s how to limit screen time on the Secure Family app:

1. Select the desired child.
2. Scroll down to Time Limits.
3. Choose School Hours or Night Hours and adjust the time according to your child’s schedule.
   
4. Tap “Add a Time Limit” to add custom times for setting the time limits. Save the changes.

Block Data – Scores 8/10

1. Sign in on your AT&T account.
2. Select the line you want to limit screen time.
3. Tap Usage.
4. Click View More Usage Details and Options.
5. Tap Manage Data.
6. Toggle Data OFF to block data until the end of the billing cycle.
7. Toggle Data On to unblock.

You can also pause and unpause internet by clicking on Pause Internet or Resume Internet.

Filter Web and App Use – Scores 8/10

You can block apps and websites using categories.

Click on these categories:

• Objectionable;
• Messaging;
• Social Media;
• Video;
• Games;
• Malware.

Secure Family has age-appropriate filters for content such as High, Medium, Low, and None.

To set up specific filters:

1. Click on the child.
2. Scroll down to Content Filters.
3. Tap Add a Website; click Block a website or Trust a website.
4. Enter the website’s URL to block or trust a website. Save the changes.

How to Bypass AT&T Secure Family

Kids ask about this, and the problem is that it is possible.

1. Go to the parent’s device and find “Parental Control.”
2. Find the list of devices linked to the parent link.
3. Locate your line and tap Remove.
4. This will remove your phone from the list of monitored devices.

AT&T Secure Family Cost

AT&T Secure Family is available from the Google Play or App Store.

The first 30 days are free for new AT&T Secure Family subscribers. After that, you will be charged $7.99 per month. The subscription caters to ten lines and auto-renews monthly unless you cancel.

Does AT&T Family Locator Work When the Phone is Off?

AT&T Family Locator cannot locate a phone when it’s off. The app can also not track a phone if it’s out of the AT&T coverage area. However, AT&T can track a phone if GPS is off, but the location won’t be as accurate since it will use cellular towers.

Why is AT&T Secure Family Not Working?

The reasons the Secure Family app is not working, and their solutions, are listed below:

1. You’ve Not Installed the Secure Family Companion App
   If you’ve not yet paired Secure Family with the companion device, it will not monitor any features. In addition, if your kid has removed the companion app as an active app on their phone, you will not be able to use Secure Family features. Ensure that you have paired your device with the companion app and that the app is active on the respective phone.
2. Your Child’s Mobile Data is Off
   Secure Family must use cellular data to function properly. Check if the companion device settings have changed and return them to the proper settings to allow Secure Family to function.
3. You are Logged into More Than One Device
   If you are logged into two devices and want to be located, your location may show as stuck or bounce between two places. Always check that you are logged into one device for location tracking to work accurately.
4. You Are Using an Outdated Secure Family Version
   The Secure Family app may not work if you’re not using the latest version. Updating AT&T Secure Family data on all authorized app users’ phones will help you access the app’s features.
5. You Are Using Third-Party Apps that Block Secure Family
   Some apps like task managers and app killers claim to reduce battery life dramatically, but they prevent Secure Family from running. This means you can’t access all the features of this app. You need to access these apps and permit Secure Family to run.

Secure Family App Reviews

AT&T Secure Family has 34.2k reviews on Google Play and 13.2k reviews on the App Store. Users have rated it an average of 4.4 stars.

Users who like AT&T Family Secure love that it accurately shows the location. Others like that you can set alerts for location and time. Parents like that it gives them peace of mind knowing their child’s location and the content they are exposed to.

Some users have issues setting restrictions on app usage without the companion app. This is because Secure Family replaced Smart Limits. Users also complained that the app is easy to disable or unpair the app. Others expressed trust issues with their parents after the app showed they used their phone during the set time limit.

AT&T Secure Family vs. Third-Party Apps

The comparison of the features of Secure Family and other trackers are in the table:

Alternatives for AT&T Secure Family App

You can find great alternatives to the AT&T Secure Family app. These are my two great options:

Track Any Phone by Number with Scannero

Scannero is a remarkable service that offers advanced tracking solutions using a phone number. You only need the user’s phone number if you want to track any phone, not AT&T only. Installing an app on your device or the tracked phone is unnecessary.

How it Works

You’ll need to create a Scannero account on the official Scannero website. Next, enter the number you want to locate in the search bar. Then send a location request.

Scannero will send a text message with a location tracking link to the target phone. Once the person clicks on the link, Scannero will obtain their location using their IP address. This takes only a few minutes. Scannero will show you the person’s location on a map. The location details include their real-time location, address, accuracy, and time stamps.

Scannero is compatible with all devices, regardless of mobile carrier or phone type, since it’s web-based. It’s best for locating a person on demand, as you can’t track their live location on the move.

Try Scannero.io

Use uMobix for Better Parental Control

uMobix parental control app has some of the best features for monitoring your child’s device. It includes location tracking, geofencing, internet monitoring, social media tracking, and keylogging.

How it Works

You’ll need to install uMobix on the target phone. You can install it remotely on iPhones but require physical access on Android devices. uMobix operates in stealth mode. Once installed, it disguises itself, making it hard for a child to find it. Thus, it isn’t easy to uninstall.

uMobix syncs the features of the monitored device to an online dashboard. You will see all the tracked features, including the phone’s real-time location, call logs, and text messages. You can scroll the dashboard to see the entered keystroke, social media chats, and browser history.

uMobix allows you to stay in the loop of your child’s digital activities to guide them appropriately. And it doesn’t depend on AT&T services.

Try uMobix

Conclusion

AT&T Secure Family gives parents the features they need to monitor their children’s devices. Its location tracking is accurate; you can set location alerts when required. Apart from locating your child, you can also filter content, set time limits, and pause internet access.