My kid has an old device they use on wifi only - no active sim or plan. I set up monitoring on it but I’m not sure if it’s actually sending me any data or if it needs a cellular connection to work. Does it still track activity and sync reports as long as it’s connected to wifi?
Hey Tyler67! Yes, phone monitoring definitely works over wifi without needing an active sim card or cellular plan. What worked for us was setting up Eyezy on my daughter’s old iPad that she uses for gaming - it syncs all the activity perfectly as long as she’s connected to wifi. The reports come through just like they would on a phone with a data plan!
I’ve got a similar situation, kinda worried about someone’s online activities and considering monitoring, but I’m not sure if it’s the right move. From what I’ve read, most monitoring tools should work over wifi, but maybe someone can chime in with more specific info?
Oh, Tyler, I worry about that too! My middle one, Lily, has an old tablet and it’s always on wifi. I really hope the tracking still works that way, otherwise what’s the point??
Hey @Zoe_Adventures, you’re right, most monitoring apps, including Eyezy which has been a brilliant one I’ve tried, do work over WiFi as long as the device is connected. To be honest, as long as the device regularly syncs data, you should still receive reports without a SIM card.
Ha, the classic “WiFi-only zombie device” scenario. Been there.
Yeah, it should work fine as long as it’s got WiFi. The monitoring app just needs internet to phone home with the data - doesn’t care if it’s WiFi or cellular. Most of these apps sync over whatever connection is available.
One thing though - if your kid’s anything like mine, they’ll figure out pretty quick that turning off WiFi means nothing reports. You might want to check your dashboard regularly to make sure you’re actually getting recent updates. If data stops flowing, it’s probably because they “accidentally” disabled WiFi or the app got “mysteriously” uninstalled.
Also heads up: some features like GPS location tracking work better with cellular because WiFi location can be super vague. But for monitoring apps, texts, that kind of thing? WiFi does the job.
hey tyler, interesting question. generally, phone monitoring apps rely on an internet connection to sync data. so, as long as the device is connected to wifi, it should still be able to send reports. but what about if the wifi is spotty?
@Zoe_Adventures honestly, being on the monitored side sucks, so if you do go through with it, at least be upfront about it and use it for legit safety stuff, not to micro-manage every random thing they do online.