Jamaican cybersecurity expert Jeehan Miller wrote this timely caution for parents and caregivers to help them manage the device use of their children during the extended vacation period. Originally posted to her LinkedIn profile, it is reproduced here with her permission.

Summer is here (July-August Vacation or JAVA in Trinidad and Tobago), and with it comes the annual surge in connected devices across Jamaican homes. Kids are out of school, spending more unsupervised hours online, and of course, receiving new phones and tablets as rewards for PEP results and good school reports. It’s a great time to be a kid. It’s also open season for anyone looking to exploit an unmonitored device.

The threat landscape has only gotten sharper since last summer. Here’s what’s happening, and what you can actually do about it.

🛡️ Every New Device is a Digital Door

Routers have overtaken laptops and endpoints as the single riskiest category of connected device on any network, according to Forescout’s 2026 Riskiest Connected Devices report. The average router now carries roughly 32 known vulnerabilities, and outdated firmware combined with unchanged default passwords remains the easiest way in for attackers. Separate industry data shows router-related incidents make up the majority of all Internet of Things (IoT) -driven cyberattacks worldwide.

That matters at home because the family router is usually the one device nobody thinks to update. Smart TVs, gaming consoles, smartwatches, phones and tablets all sit behind it, and if it’s compromised, everything connected through it is exposed too.

Shared family devices are often overlooked in terms of software updates and become gateways for cybercriminals, especially with kids spending longer, less supervised hours online. There’s also a surge in the use of mobile devices over unsecured Wi-Fi during summer travel, making personal and family data even more vulnerable to attacks.

📱 What’s Actually Available for iOS Parents Right Now

Before getting to what’s coming, here’s what you can set up on iOS today. Screen Time (Settings > Screen Time) is the foundation:

✅ Downtime and App Limits let you block apps and notifications for set hours, or cap time spent per app or category, with an Always Allowed list (calls, messages to approved contacts) that stays open regardless.

✅ Content & Privacy Restrictions cover explicit website blocking, app-download age ratings, in-app purchase limits, and Ask to Buy, which sends you a notification before your child can download or buy anything.

✅ Communication Safety, on by default for accounts under 18, scans Messages, AirDrop, and FaceTime on-device for nudity before it’s sent or viewed. Apple never sees the images themselves.

✅ Communication Limits restrict who your child can call, text, or FaceTime with, both during allowed hours and Downtime.

✅ A Child Account, set up through Family Sharing, is the starting point for all of the above and is required for kids under 13.

🤖 What’s Actually Available for Android Parents Right Now

✅ Google Family Link, the existing standalone app, works today on any Android phone (and iPhone, for a parent’s device) and covers screen time limits, downtime and School Time schedules, Google Play purchase approval and content filtering by age rating, SafeSearch enforcement, and location sharing.

✅ Built-in Android Parental Controls, folded directly into device Settings rather than requiring the separate app, started rolling out on Pixel phones on June 16 with the Android 17 update. They cover daily screen time budgets, downtime scheduling, per-app time limits or blocks, and Google Play content-rating filters, all behind a parent PIN, with a direct link to Family Link for the deeper features.

⚠️ Worth knowing: the built-in version is genuinely new but not yet universal, it’s live on Pixel now and will reach Samsung, Motorola, and other Android brands gradually “throughout the rest of 2026” as each rolls out Android 17. If your child’s phone hasn’t updated yet, Family Link’s existing app-based controls work exactly the same as before and are the ones to set up today.

Worth knowing either way: Family Link’s strictest controls are built for children under 13. Once your child’s account transitions at 13, supervision loosens considerably, Google’s own terms require it. If you’ve got a tween approaching that birthday, it’s worth having the “what changes” conversation before the cutoff, not after.

💬 A note about WhatsApp: What Parents Can and Can’t Control

For WhatsApp, Parent-managed accounts, launched by Meta in March 2026, let a parent set up and supervise a WhatsApp account for a child under 13. From your own linked device, you can control who can message your child, which groups they can join, and their privacy settings, all locked behind a parent PIN. Again, once your child turns 13, the account converts to a standard one, no parental oversight at the platform level.

For teens already on WhatsApp, focus on what’s actually available: silencing calls from unknown numbers, two-step verification, restricting who can add them to groups, and walking through the block-and-report tools together so it’s second nature before they need it.

Your Cyber Safe Summer Checklist

✅ Update and patch every device, routers, consoles, phones, laptops, tablets. Firmware updates close the exact holes attackers scan for first. For router updates Jamaica Cyber Incident Response Team (JaCIRT)can assist with guiding you how to do it.

✅ Turn on multi-factor authentication everywhere it’s offered.

✅ Set up age-appropriate parental controls: Child Accounts and Screen Time on iOS, the built-in Android controls plus Family Link on Android, and parent-managed accounts on WhatsApp for under-13s.

✅ Controls are a backstop, not a substitute for conversation. Talk to them about what to do if a stranger messages them, why “disappearing” messages aren’t really gone, and that they won’t be in trouble for telling you something feels wrong.

✅ Talk to your kids about cyberbullying, inappropriate requests for nude or semi-nude pictures, and other unacceptable online behaviour. Show them how to block and report these and similar activities.

✅ Teach kids to think before they click. Unexpected links, “you’ve won a prize” messages, and attachments from unknown senders are still the fastest way onto a device, even inside apps like WhatsApp or Instagram DMs.

✅ Review app and privacy settings regularly, and teach kids to keep personal info such as location, school name, and daily routines private, especially from people they’ve only met online.

✅ Limit unnecessary device permissions, like location and microphone access, to what an app actually needs to function.

✅ Avoid public Wi-Fi for anything sensitive while traveling, and use a VPN if you must connect.

✅ Power off devices when they’re not in use.

🎉 Let’s make this a genuinely cyber-safe summer. Set up the controls, have the conversations, and share this with another parent who could use it. Let’s enjoy everything our connected lives offer, without handing over the keys to whoever’s scanning for the next open door.

About the author

Jeehan Miller is a practising Data Protection Officer certified in Cybersecurity, a Certified Ransomware Protection Officer, and an IT practitioner of over 20 years. This article is intended for general guidance and awareness purposes.

Organisations facing a data breach or suspected breach should seek advice from their DPO promptly and appropriate legal advice from their legal team.She is an IT Consultant, Data Protection Officer, and Cyber Awareness Specialist. She is the Chief Privacy Officer for the Jamaica Artificial Intelligence Association and the Women in AI Governance Regional Chapter Chair for Jamaica.

She has over 20 years of experience in IT, holds an MBA in IT Management from the University of Leicester, a BSc in Computer Science from The University of the West Indies, a Certified Information Privacy Manager Certification from IAPP, and is ISC2 Certified in Cybersecurity.
Jeehan is also a Certified Ransomware Protection Officer and NIST Cybersecurity Expert from the ICTTF. She is passionate about educating vulnerable groups about cyber risks and online safety.