Family Controls

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Prevent access to the Screen Time API without guardian approval and provide opaque tokens that represent apps and websites.

Posts under Family Controls tag

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Standalone watch app design/approach for kids/family/shared watches paired with parents' phones
Hi, so, we grabbed a couple of nice new watches the other week (Ultra for dad, SE for teenage son). Mostly cool and working together (calls, messages, maps, walkie talkies, etc, etc). All good. But then son said, "Dad, why can't I see my sleep stuff like you can..?". He was right, it wasn't working. Looking around a bit, it turns out that there are a bunch of things that are turned off or not available when pairing a kids watch with dad's phone. From the Apple page: "The following features and apps are not available: Medications, respiratory rate, irregular heart rhythm notifications, ECG, AF History, Cycle Tracking, Sleep, Wrist Temperature, Blood Oxygen, Walking Steadiness, Audiobooks, Remote, News, Shortcuts and the double-tap gesture". Now dev-me reacts to this situation with: "Ok, so let's just build a little standalone sleep app for son's watch. There must be lots of parents out there who would like the same thing". And there are also a bunch of other "family sharing" enabled apps that when you try and use them on kid's phone, say "iPhone requireed", i.e, they don't apparently work with just a watch hooked up to mum or dad's phone. So before I dive into that kind of project, which seems like an obvious fix path from a dev and a parents' point of view: does anybody know if this from Apple's point of view is a hardware, a software or a legal/age limitation? What's the basic framework/dev/design issue here? Is it something on the device(s) that prevents sleep data from even being collected on family/kids paired watches? (Therefore don't bother trying to build an app); I assume not becauses it's just a normal SE used by a kid; or Is it "just" that Apple hasn't wanted to make that available without a kids iPhone too (Therefore you could certainly build a standalone app to do what Apple hasn't wanted to do); or Netiher 1 nor 2, but Apple won't even allow Sleep data collection for kids for some legal/health data reason (Therefore don't bother trying to build the app).
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489
Oct ’24
How to force update data from child phone ? FamilyControls / Screen Time Api / DeviceActivity
The data displayed about a child’s apps can be outdated (DeviceActivityReport), leading to misinformation for the user. When I access the “Screen Time” section (for child in the parent device) in the iPhone settings, I see there is an update functionality to force load the actual data. I have tried various workarounds, such as attempting to force an update on the child’s device to call DeviceActivityReport and opening system settings, but none of these have been successful :( How can I implement something similar? Is there a way to force update this data ?
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484
Nov ’24
Screen Time passcode forgot passcode
When I upgraded to iOS 18 beta, I don’t recall setting a screen time passcode, however one is set. I am locked out from changing the passcode. I have clicked “forgot passcode” down at bottom but it doesn’t do anything. I am the only user on this phone. I am currently running iOS iOS 18.2 (22C5125e). Please advise, as screen time is locked and cannot be viewed nor change passcode
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244
Nov ’24
Family control app uploading error
/Users/varunashokbhaisidpara/Desktop/Screenshot 2024-11-15 at 5.43.44 PM.png This error occurs When I try to upload an app on the test flight or App Store. I checked "Automatically manage signing" in the main target. and i have added extensions DeviceActivityMonitorExtension, ShieldConfigurationExtension, ShieldActionExtension, DeviceActivityReport. and all have selected "Automatically manage signing" in the target > signing and capability. pls provide me with an exact solution set by step. Thank you
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807
Nov ’24
Can I Detect Which App the User Opens Using the Screen Time API?
I'm working with the Screen Time API in iOS and have successfully implemented the following: Granted Screen Time Permission: The app asks for and obtains Screen Time permissions without any issues. Blocked Specific Apps: Using FamilyActivitySelection, I can block access to certain apps. Monitoring Device Activity: With DeviceActivityCenter().startMonitoring(), I’m able to successfully start monitoring. DeviceActivityCenter().startMonitoring(.myActivity, during: schedule) Now, I’m wondering if there’s a way to detect exactly which app the user opens, so I can fire an API from my own app based on that event. Is this kind of real-time app usage detection possible with the Screen Time API? If so, how might it be implemented?
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486
Dec ’24
Family Controls Usage Data
Hi all, For context, the Family Controls entitlement request (for the Personal Device Management category/individual use case) includes the question: Will your app share device or usage data beyond the individual for the individual use case, or Family Sharing for the parent/guardian use case, including through means such as screenshots, screen recordings, or server logging? I'm looking for clarification on how to interpret this. I originally answered Yes and was rejected, then later answered No and was accepted. Ideally, I would like my screen time management app to allow users to opt-in to social features. One simple example is opting into a leaderboard with your friends for who has the lowest screen time. If the user installed this app for themself and chooses to share this basic data with their friends, it sounds like an ethical and unproblematic feature but I suppose storing that data would fall under "server logging"? If anyone has any experience with this, I would appreciate a more explicit description of the requirement above. Is what I described allowed? Thanks for reading!
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518
Nov ’24
Premature DeviceActivityEvent Triggering
Our app monitors device usage and applies a shield when the set time limit is reached. Multiple DeviceActivitySchedules can be present, each with different time limits. To display notifications at 50% of the total limit for each DeviceActivitySchedule, we set a warning time at half of the total time. However, we occasionally receive premature event callbacks. For example, consider a schedule from 13:00 to 13:30 with a single event threshold at 10 minutes and a warning time of 5 minutes. The 'eventDidReachThreshold' callback is delivered prematurely, along with the 'eventWillReachThresholdWarning' callback, at 13:10. Additionally, in some cases, when one DeviceActivitySchedule ends and the next begins immediately, DeviceActivityEvents registered for the new DeviceActivitySchedule are delivered prematurely along with the schedule start callback. For example, consider there are two DeviceActivitySchedules from 12:00 to 13:00 and from 13:00 to 14:00, each with a limit of 10 minutes and a warning time of 5 minutes. When the first schedule ends and the next begins at 13:00, the 'eventDidReachThreshold' callbacks for the events registered in the second schedule are delivered prematurely, along with the 'intervalDidStart' callback.
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402
Nov ’24
Taking long time to load Device Activity Report
When I try to load the device activity report, it takes too long to load data. Is this because of development time? Will the problem be solved when the app is live on the App Store? If it does not depend on the development profile, then please give me a solution for the fast data loading in the device activity report extension. Thank you
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409
Nov ’24
Device activity report data View is hidding when change the tab
I am working on the device activity report. and fetched data is loading on the chart. I am developing app using TabbarController. when I go to another tab and come back to the chart screen, it disappears. Here, I am working on a storyboard using Swift language, and device activity reports can be fetched only with SwiftUI. So, the problem is with it? Following the current code. @State private var context: DeviceActivityReport.Context = .init(rawValue: "Daily Activity") @State private var report: DeviceActivityReport? @State private var filter = DeviceActivityFilter( segment: .daily( during: Calendar.current.dateInterval( of: .day, for: .now )! ) // users: .all // devices: .init([.iPhone, .iPad]) ) @State var isReload: Bool = false var body: some View { ZStack { if isReload { LoadingView(title: "Data is loading...") } else if let report = report { report } else { DeviceActivityReport(context, filter: filter) } } .onAppear { DispatchQueue.main.async { report = DeviceActivityReport(context, filter: filter) } } } struct LoadingView: View { var title: String = "Please wait..." var body: some View { HStack { ProgressView(title) .font(.system(size: 14, weight: .medium)) .progressViewStyle(.horizontal) .tint(Color(.darkGray)) .padding(8) } .background(Color(.white)) .cornerRadius(8) .clipped() } }
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603
Nov ’24
swift DeviceActivityReport run in background
DeviceActivityReport presents statistics for a device: https://developer.apple.com/documentation/deviceactivity/deviceactivityreport The problem: DeviceActivityReport can present statistics with a delay for a parent device (when DeviceActivityReport is presenting, the DeviceActivityReportExtension is called to process the statistics). One possible solution is to call DeviceActivityReport periodically throughout the day in a child device. However, the app will not be available all day. Is there any way to run DeviceActivityReport in the background? I have tried the following approach, but it didn’t work (DeviceActivityReportExtension didnt call): let hostingController: UIHostingController? = .init(rootView: DeviceActivityReport(context, filter: filter)) hostingController?.view.frame = .init(origin: .zero, size: .init(width: 100, height: 100)) hostingController?.beginAppearanceTransition(true, animated: false) hostingController?.loadView() hostingController?.viewDidLoad() try? await Task.sleep(for: .seconds(0.5)) hostingController?.viewWillAppear(true) hostingController?.viewWillLayoutSubviews() try? await Task.sleep(for: .seconds(0.5)) hostingController?.viewDidAppear(true) try? await Task.sleep(for: .seconds(0.5)) hostingController?.didMove(toParent: rootVC) try? await Task.sleep(for: .seconds(0.5)) hostingController?.viewWillLayoutSubviews() hostingController?.viewDidLayoutSubviews() hostingController?.view.layoutIfNeeded() hostingController?.view.layoutSubviews() hostingController?.endAppearanceTransition() Is there any way to run DeviceActivityReport in the background? (when app is not visible/closed). The main problem is call DeviceActivityReport
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537
Nov ’24
How to Share and Access Dynamically Updating Data Across Different Targets?
I have a app with two targets: a main DeviceActivityApp target and a DeviceReport target. In the DeviceReport target, I have a TotalActivityReport struct conforming to DeviceActivityReportScene. Inside its makeConfiguration method, I update a dynamically generated list of AppReport items. The list updates correctly in the DeviceReport target. // Define which context your scene will represent. let context: DeviceActivityReport.Context = .totalActivity // Define the custom configuration and the resulting view for this report. let content: (MonitorDeviceReport) -> TotalActivityViewFirst @ObservedObject var activityData:ActivityData func makeConfiguration(representing data: DeviceActivityResults<DeviceActivityData>) async -> MonitorDeviceReport { // Reformat the data into a configuration that can be used to create // the report's view. var appList:[AppsReport]=[] let totalActivityDuration = await data.flatMap { $0.activitySegments }.reduce(0, { $0 + $1.totalActivityDuration }) for await _data in data{ for await activity in _data.activitySegments{ for await category in activity.categories{ for await app in category.applications{ let name=app.application.localizedDisplayName ?? "No Name" let bundleId=app.application.bundleIdentifier ?? "nil" let duration=app.totalActivityDuration let appIcon=app.application.token let app=AppsReport(id:bundleId,duration:duration, name:name, icon:appIcon) appList.append(app) } } } } DispatchQueue.main.async { activityData.list=appList } return MonitorDeviceReport(duration:totalActivityDuration, apps:appList) } } public class ActivityData:ObservableObject{ @Published var list:[AppsReport]=[] public static let shared = ActivityData() }. // This is in MonitorReport target However, I need to access this dynamic list in my MyApp target, specifically in ContentView.swift. I tried using an ObservableObject (ActivityData) to share the data between targets, but the list always appears empty in the MyApp target. Here’s what I’ve tried so far: Created a shared ActivityData instance using @Published Passed the ActivityData instance to TotalActivityReport Used dependency injection and a singleton pattern for ActivityData Verified that makeConfiguration updates the list correctly in DeviceReport What could I be missing? How can I correctly share and access this data across targets?
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381
Nov ’24
Device Activity Report Per hour Screen-time of apps for Graph
Hi everyone, I need to display a Graph based on Screen-time of apps per hour, from 12Am to 11PM. Am able to get the screen-time data for whole day with each app's total screen-time value. Am kind of confused how can I get the per hour screen-time of apps. I have applied filter of day DeviceActivityFilter( segment: .daily( during: Calendar.current.dateInterval( of: .day, for: .now )! ), users: .all, devices: .init([.iPhone, .iPad]) ) Am also using this data to display apps with their usage just like Apple's Screen_time in settings. I need to display exact same graph just like Apple's screen in phone settings for a Day.
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625
Nov ’24
FamilyActivitySelection tokens are invalid for other members in family sharing network
I'm currently working with the FamilyControls API and testing my app on two different devices. Both apps are in the same family-sharing network with one phone being the owner of the network (I'll call this A) and the other one being an adult in the network(I'll call this B). When device A picks apps using the FamilyActivityPicker, it shares that selection with device B (via encoding, sending over network, and decoding on device B). However, interacting with the token (displaying it, using it in shield) throws an error saying the token is null. From the documentation, I thought every token would be the same across all devices in the family sharing network. So my question: How do I send the FamilyActivitySelection from A to B and have the tokens still be functional? Does this functionality only work if A is a "parent" and B is a "child" in the family sharing network? Also, side note: If I reverse the process and send the tokens from B to A. Interacting with the token works exactly as expected. For some reason, it's only going from A to B where it doesn't work.
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473
Mar ’25
FamilyActivitySelection sharing between device in Family Sharing Network
I'm working with the FamilyControls API and am running into an issue with sharing ActivityTokens between devices in the same family sharing network. Based on this documentation, ActivityTokens are only accessible and readable by other members in the family sharing network. My app is based on the idea that if one user selects the Games category in the FamilyActivityPicker, then this token can be shared with another device in the same family-sharing network and this other device can read and display the category. So my question is: If a user in the network selects an activity category in the FamilyActivityPicker, can this category token be shared, read, and used by another user in the family-sharing network?
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390
Dec ’24
DeviceActivityCenter.startMonitoring occasionally crash in the morning
When I use the screen time API, the app occasionally crashes in the morning. I mean the UI freeze lasts for more than ten seconds. But the weird thing is that I work normally during the day, that is, in the morning, when I just woke up. (There is no Do Not Disturb mode). This problem has been bothering me for several days, please help. The specific crash log is as follows, and the specific code is as follows. Model: iPhone 15 Pro, iOS: 18.1.1 Thanks for your help! Code: private func startAppMonitoring(application: ApplicationToken, seconds: Int, isFromNow: Bool) { let schedule = DeviceActivitySchedule( intervalStart: isFromNow ? Calendar.current.dateComponents([.hour, .minute, .second], from: Date()) : DateComponents(timeZone: TimeZone(identifier:TimeZone.current.identifier), hour: 0, minute: 0, second: 0), intervalEnd: DateComponents(timeZone: TimeZone(identifier:TimeZone.current.identifier), hour: 23, minute: 58, second: 59), repeats: true, warningTime: DateComponents(minute: 1) ) let event = DeviceActivityEvent( applications: Set([application]), threshold: DateComponents(second: seconds) ) let center = DeviceActivityCenter() do { try center.startMonitoring(DeviceActivityName("\(application.hashValue)Usage"), during: schedule, events: [DeviceActivityEvent.Name("\(application.hashValue)Event"): event]) } catch { print("Error starting monitoring schedule: \(error)") } } Crash report:
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488
Dec ’24
Screen Time API ( screen to select app)
Hello, we are building an app to limit children's screen time and using Screen Time API. We found bug on the screen where the user selects app category and apps, if the user selects Other category, the screen will crash (he will be empty, but if you reload screen, it will show apps again as usual). We hope that Apple will fix it someday, but we are trying to notify our users about this problem, and the problem is that we don't know what the user selects on Apple screen with apps till the user clicks Save or Done. But we need to notify him either when he clicks on the Other category or when he faces crash of this screen. We want to show a pop-up to user with explanation why screen crashed.
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540
Dec ’24