How to Find Hidden Apps on Your Child’s Phone

Your kid’s career and future can be negatively affected by inappropriate activity on any app. However, some high school kids feel as though they are able to act out on certain apps because the app promises anonymity or the disappearance of content. But we all know that privacy is a myth in today’s era. It is crucial for parents concerned about their children's online activities to be aware of what apps should be avoided. Some parents question how to find hidden apps on android or iPhone? And what happens after you declare an app off-limits? Teens' phones may contain more than meets the eye when it comes to apps they have installed. Because certain apps do not appear on their parent's phone bills, some kids might believe they can engage in negative activities. But parents can find hidden apps using certain tricks.

There is a risk of predators harming your innocent child by encouraging them to use such apps or telling them to hide filthy pictures from you. Your child's apps should be monitored, and as a parent, you must keep an eye on them. Most predators use these apps to make so-called friends with kids and introduce themselves as young students. They slowly engage in the conversation and suggest young kids install such apps to hide information. 

Part 1. How to Find Hidden Apps on Your kids’ Phone

1. Use parental control and monitoring apps

Safeguarding your children has now become easier with SpyX. You can use this secret tool to find hidden apps in your kid’s cellphone. From getting the live location to deleted messages, you can view it all by using SpyX. The SpyX app will let you know if anything goes wrong or if anyone tries to take advantage of your kid’s innocence. You can find hidden apps on both android and iOS devices. A Live Demo is available on their website so that you can get an idea of how the installation process works. On an Android device, you must disable Google Play Protect in order to install this app. The app file must be manually downloaded from a SpyX link after Play Protect has been disabled. You will get all the installation instructions on their official website. But for iOS devices, you need cloud credentials. Furthermore, you can enjoy free live-demo view as well to see if they can match your requirements. You can try SpyX for one month for $48.99, three months for $27.99, and a year for $11.66.

2. Search for hidden apps on the app store

Most of the hidden apps are denoted by suspicious icons and widely popular vault apps. If your kid is using an iOS device then you can go to the App Store while in the case of an Android device, you can go to the Play Store. Find a vault or hidden app like AppLock, Vault, Vaulty, SpyCalc, Hide It Pro, Secret Photo Vault, Secret Calculator, or Calculator Photo Vault. Search the apps mentioned above and make sure there is “Install” written on the icons. There are no vault apps on your kid’s phone if there is an install sign. However, your child has installed a vault or hidden app if the install sign says "Open" instead of "GET" or "Install."

3. Look for any suspicious app on your child’s phone

Nude pictures, pornographic images, and videos can sometimes be found on the internet by children. It is possible that they are using such secret apps to hide this information, which is even illegal in some places when they are underage. Vault apps are widely popular among teens to hide things. The app allows you to hide your content so that only you can access it with a passcode.  If you can search for apps with the lock or vault logo then try to open them. Whenever you receive a password, passcode, or fingerprint request from the app, you should know that it is some vault app. Sometimes there is a calculator logo to confuse others. But cross verify of a calculator app is already built into the phone and you are viewing two calculator icons at the same time. If you see two calculator apps on your kid's phone, then it is confirmed that one of them is a hidden app. You can only open it by entering your password and tapping the specific sign.

Part 2. How to Find Hidden Apps through Settings

You can find hidden apps on anyone's phone using this very simple and easy method. You can find anything on the phone just by going through the settings application. You will understand how much effort your child put into hiding things from you on the phone.

Follow the steps below to find hidden apps through settings:

● First get your kid’s phone since without having access to the target phone, these apps cannot be detected.

● Now go to the Settings app and select the “Apps & Notifications” option from the menu.

● Here you will be able to see all the installed applications which are currently being used by your kid. This will also show you the hidden apps.

Part 3. How to Find Hidden Apps in App Drawers

With each update, the phone's features become better and smarter. A lot of ways exist for finding hidden applications, and App Drawer is one of them. You can open the App Drawer by swiping the home screen from down to the top.  Now go to the menu icon and tap on it. In general, it appears as three dots or a setting 'gear' at the top of the applications list, next to the search bar, depending on your device version. Next, you need to click on Home Screen Settings and after that scroll down until you see the “Hide Apps” option.

Part 4. What Parents Should Do after Finding Hidden Apps 

1. Get to Know the App

Ensure your children understand the meaning and work of the applications they have downloaded by reviewing and analyzing them regularly. You must learn the way these apps work and talk to your kids about everything. Being vigilant and staying connected to your child in their digital environment is one of the best ways to keep them from making risky decisions online.

2. Have A Chat with Children

It is common for children to use hidden apps on their smartphones in order to protect their personal information, such as photos, text messages, and video games, from their parents. But having a healthy conversation with your children will develop trustworthy relationships and they will no longer need such apps if you become their best friends. Talk to them about their peers, hobbies, fears, and what limits them to share the information with you.

3. Keep Positive Relationship with Children

Parents can monitor their children's actions on their phones by maintaining a positive relationship with them. As a parent, you must bridge the gap between you and your children so that they can trust you.  

Related: How to Raise Successful Kids

Part 5. Conclusion

In order to prevent parents from interfering with their private lives, children deliberately hide apps on their devices, such as images, text messages, or online games. Unfortunately, they are too young to be aware of both the positive and negative aspects of these applications. But having a healthy conversation with your child can eliminate the need for such apps. For extra security, you may install a parental control app on your kid’s cellphone but make sure not to scrutinize everything they do. If you discover unexpected content on his/her phone the best way to deal with this situation is to have a healthy conversation with your child.