Get control with Parental Controls, part 4: Netflix

In previous articles, we talked about how parental controls can be used to help control your children’s viewing habits. Televisions have parental controls built in, as do satellite receivers and cable boxes. But what about Netflix?

Parental controls with physical discs are easy. All it takes is a locked cabinet and a place to keep the key. Streaming video, however, presents different hurdles. Netflix gives you an easy way to provide control over what is being played on your account. This will work with Netflix.com and Netflix-ready devices like TVs, set-top IPTV boxes and gaming consoles.

The setup must be done from a computer, and it’s easy. Go to netflix.com and click on the “Your Account & Help” area at the upper right.

From the Your Account Screen, scroll down to Parental Control Setting, and click.

At this point you will have to log in again. It’s worth saying, This won’t work if you give your children your Netflix password. If your kids can log into Netflix without you, they can do everything you can, and they’ll just take the parental controls off.

In this screen you can set ratings limits. It’s that easy, but it does take up to a day to take effect so plan ahead. In the meantime, take a minute to look at the viewing activity on the “Your Account” screen. You can see your instant viewing and DVD activity and it should be pretty clear if someone in the house is watching something that shouldn’t be viewed in front of the kids.

About the Author

Stuart Sweet
Stuart Sweet is the editor-in-chief of The Solid Signal Blog and a "master plumber" at Signal Group, LLC. He is the author of over 10,000 articles and longform tutorials including many posted here. Reach him by clicking on "Contact the Editor" at the bottom of this page.