How Bark Works

7 million families trust Bark to help keep their kids safe online. With our parental controls, parents can feel more at ease raising their children in the digital age.

Our technology runs in the background, scanning your child’s activities for dangers

Bark monitors texts, social media, apps & more for potential dangers — even the photos and videos your child saves.

If something concerning is found, we let you know — ASAP

Online safety for kids is important. From bullying to suicidal ideation, our alerts make sure you can get your child the support they need.

24/7 GPS-powered location tracking gives you peace of mind

We make location sharing simple with a real-time map, customizable location alerts, and check-ins.

Create a kid-safe digital world with blocking

Choose from 45 categories of websites & apps to block — you can even create exceptions like “No streaming sites except for Disney+”.

Make screen time rules that change with the time of day

Get granular and block YouTube during the school day or limit bedtime apps to music only — your family’s rules can be whatever you need.

Don’t know the latest teen and tween slang? We’ve got you covered.

Our constantly evolving technology keeps up with the latest emojis & slang terms and flags issues you may have missed.

Real-life Bark families. Real-life stories.

Cindy R.

February 12

I just want to get on here and say PLEASE get Bark online monitoring. Yesterday it saved our family. Out of respect for our son’s privacy I won’t go into details. But I will say this: (1) we are a family who talks about EVERYTHING on the daily, I literally run a non-profit about kids and mental health… (2) he is an AMAZING, thoughtful, kind, sweet person and (3) he almost got into a situation that would have haunted him for the rest of his life. You need the open communication AND Bark to battle modern childhood.

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2 comments
Brett K.

March 3

With Bark alerts, I now have peace of mind that my kids’ devices are safe and I don’t have to look at everything.

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3 comments
Cassia M.

October 9

Bark is like the Swiss Army knife of my parenting tool box. I find a new benefit of having it constantly. It’s the most helpful tool I have in keeping my teenagers safe and helping me stay in the know with their crazy world of technology.

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5 comments
Dave C.

January 10

Best of all, the conversations we have regarding Bark alerts give me insight into my child’s world and his relationships.

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4 comments
Jenna U.

December 5

It was like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders when stumbling across the Bark app.

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12 comments
Shannon F.

June 10

We no longer feel the need to confiscate their phones and read through everything daily. We can trust that Bark has a set of eyes on their electronic actions and will notify us of anything concerning.

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2 comments
Marianne H.

September 2

Thanks a ton. You have not only helped me protect my kids, but helped us have better and more open conversations. My kids live in a blended home, and this helps us be on the same page when we teach right and wrong and flat out dangerous

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6 comments
Maureen A.

July 27

I put bark on my children’s phone for my oldest son who is 15. Never thinking that my 11-year-old daughter would have alerts much to my surprise when I hooked up her phone I got 97 alerts for her phone. brought attention to things in never considered! Thank you so much.

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3 comments
Russell S.

December 10

I have been impressed with this app over and over again. Some of the things it was capturing from my son’s phone and alerting me to would have certainly gone undetected on a different service. Super impressed and happy with the service. Best out there hands down. We’ve used other services and I’m so glad we found Bark.

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4 comments
Sarah S.

August 8

I decided it was time I got more involved in what my daughter sees and reads. So within 3 minutes of downloading, Bark found an extremely inappropriate issue!!! Though it did not involve her, it did alert me to a picture she took a screen shot of. It was a message from a boy to a friend of hers. It made my stomach turn. Thank you!

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7 comments

FAQs

How does Bark work?

Once you connect your child's devices and accounts, Bark runs quietly in the background — no daily effort needed. Here's the basic flow:

1. Bark monitors your child's online activity

Bark scans texts, social media, emails, web searches, and saved photos and videos across your child's devices. Rather than flagging every message, it uses advanced AI and natural language processing to understand context — so it knows the difference between a kid venting about homework and a kid who's genuinely struggling.

2. You get an alert when something needs your attention

If Bark detects a potential issue — like signs of bullying, predatory behavior, suicidal ideation, or explicit content — it sends you an alert right away, along with context and guidance on how to address it.

3. You stay in control of the rest

Beyond monitoring, you can manage screen time schedules, block websites and apps by category, and track your child's location with live GPS and check-ins — all from the Bark parent app. For a deeper look, visit our How Bark Works page.

How can a web blocking app benefit your child?

Using a web blocking app can benefit your kid in a number of ways! You can use it to block content that harms their mental health, give them back time to enjoy screen-free activities, help them avoid misinformation, and much more.

How can you set screen time rules for your child?

Simply log into the Bark parent app/dashboard and decide what apps and websites you want to allow and when — we make it easy with rules for school time, bedtime, and free time.

How do Bark's location alerts work?

If you'd like to start keeping track of your child's visits to and from a location, simply add the address to your child's profile in your Bark app. Give the address a name to explain what it is, (for example, "Sarah's house" or "Soccer practice"), and then when your kid starts to move, you'll receive an alert!

How does Bark's phone monitoring app for parents compare with others?

Bark's phone monitoring app for parents not only provides comprehensive coverage for all the top apps and devices, but also takes the crucial extra step of helping families navigate the issues raised by alerts.

Here's a complete list of absolutely everything Bark monitors on every device.

Ready to get started?

Now that you know how Bark works, take the next step! Bark was created by parents, for parents, to offer a better, easier, and more effective way to help families create healthy digital habits.

Get started