YouTube is one of the best websites, when it comes to online video but the sad thing regarding YouTube is that some of the videos may not be safe for kids and small children.
Adult video clippings are uploaded daily and the YouTube website is filled with NSFW videos, MMS clips that are not safe for kids. YouTube however provides an option such as
“This video is not suitable for minors under 18 years of age. Please sign up or sign in to confirm your age.”
But this restriction is easily bypassed because kids are probably more tech savy than you or other members of the family. If you are too concerned that your children might view objectionable videos at YouTube, YouTube has a safety mode which might help.
Turn On YouTube Safety Mode - Block Adult or NSFW Videos in YouTube Search Results
To turn on YouTube safety mode, scroll down on any YouTube page until you see the “Safety mode” option as shown below:
Select the “ON” option and hit “Save”. This security filter will automatically hide inappropriate and objectionable videos from YouTube search results.
Note: This “Safety mode” filter is temporary and will revert to the “off” state whenever you close the browser window or sign out of your Google account. It would thus be wise to choose “Save and lock safety mode on this browser”. This isn’t permanent though but at least it will make sure that the safety mode is to the “ON” state whenever you are signed into that particular Google account.
Safety mode works fine for videos that have been uploaded quite some time back but they fail for recent videos that are uploaded to the YouTube website. This is because YouTube relies on the community spam reports, hence if other user’s haven’t flagged a specific video - it might still appear in search results.
To see YouTube’s safety mode in action, watch the video demonstration below:
How Do I Make Sure YouTube is Safe For Kids
Two words - It isn’t.
The best option to block unsafe content and adult videos on YouTube is to block the entire YouTube site on your computer using browser extensions, Windows hosts file or OpenDNS method. Your kids may know these tricks already, so make sure the user account he is using is not an administrator account.
You can always use alternative video sharing websites that are safe for kids. Some of them are listed below:
Kidstube - The site consists of a large collection of educational videos, pets, animal videos, music videos etc. No unsafe video is ever allowed to upload.
Kidmango - Kidmango is a video sharing website for small children who are below 12 years of age. The site features children rhymes, cartoon shows and other funny videos that your child will definitely enjoy.
ZuiTube - This one consists of thousands of YouTube videos for kids that are safe. If your 6 year old kid is addicted to cartoon shows and comic characters, ZuiTube will fill the gap when YouTube is blocked at home.
Kidz Bop: Kidz Bop is another child friendly video sharing website that contains games, music, online contests as well as featured webshows, apart from regular entertaining videos that are safe for kids.
National Geographic: Last but not the least is the National geographic video channel which contains a good collection of educational videos for kids, animal videos, places of world interest and more.
Got any other YouTube alternative for kids ? Let’s hear them in the comments section.
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