With children’s screen time on the rise, concerns about what kids might be exposed to online have increased. So, as a parent, you might be left wondering what to do. Canopy aims to be an answer. This digital parenting app is designed to protect young kids from harmful content and encourage older teens to navigate the online world more safely.
Canopy claims to filter out inappropriate content, prevent sexting, and allow parents to set up screen time schedules. But is the Canopy parental control app as effective as it promises? And how do its location tracking and app monitoring features compare to competitors?
In this article, we put the Canopy app to the test!
Canopy: Short Review
What We Like:
- Advanced technology to filter content
- Affordable pricing (7-day free trial)
- Easy cancellation process
What We Don't Like:
- Lots of installation issues
- Website blocking doesn't work
- Security concerns when installing the app
- Information in app's Help Center out of date
- Social media blocking doesn't work properly
- Security flaws were found in earlier version
The Canopy app uses artificial intelligence and machine learning technology to detect and filter out inappropriate content on the internet. Rather than blocking out entire websites, Canopy’s major selling point is that it only filters out content not suitable for children. Kids can use apps in a safer way without losing full access.
On top of that, Canopy’s sexting prevention tool can, to some extent detect suggestive photos and videos taken on the smartphone camera. These photos will then be locked until children decide to delete them or send them to a parent for review.
Just like other parental control apps, Canopy allows parents to set up website/app blocking and screen-time schedules. It’s also possible to receive location alerts when your child leaves a specified location.
Unfortunately, we found that most of Canopy’s features did not work very well. The installation process was difficult and customer support could not offer much assistance. On top of that, both the app and the website seem faulty and out of date.
Recommendation:
Though Canopy’s features are promising, at this point, you’re better off with an app like Bark or Qustodio. We’ve had much more positive experiences testing these parental control services, but look forward to seeing how Canopy will develop in the future.
If you’d rather have a look at the Canopy app yourself and test all its features, you can use the service’s seven-day free trial.
Canopy’s Specifications
The Canopy parental control app is a subscription-based service where customers pay on a monthly basis. Plans start at $7.99/month (covers three devices). Depending on how many devices you want to secure, costs go up to $15.99/month.
It’s also possible to save 15% and pay an annual price of $99.99/year. This secures five different devices. Canopy has three different plans: Individual, Duo, and Family.
In the table below we have listed some of the main features of each Canopy plan.
| Specifications | Canopy Individual | Canopy Duo | Canopy Family |
|---|---|---|---|
| Download link | Get Canopy Individual | Get Canopy Duo | Get Canopy Family |
| Pricing | $7.99/month | $9.99/month or $99.99/year (save 15%) | $15.99/month |
| Number of devices | 3 | 5 | 10 |
| Smart filtering | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Anti-tampering | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Web/app blocking | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Sexting prevention | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Screen-time management | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Location alerts | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Social media monitoring | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ |
| Text message monitoring | ✖ | ✖ | ✖ |
Whichever plan you choose, you have seven days to try out all that it offers. Your children’s privacy and online safety are essential so it is definitely worth checking out the Canopy app to see what it can do for you.
Features and Effectiveness: How Well Does Canopy Perform?
Overall, we found that while Canopy’s features look promising, not all of them function well enough in reality. Mainly, we found the app/website blocking features – arguably, the most important feature of any parental control app – to be largely ineffective.
The functions we tested in the Canopy parental control app included:
- The smart filtering feature worked well but did not block images from apps.
- The website/app blocking function which we found was easy for kids to bypass and access social media apps that were not safe.
- Canopy’s sexting prevention tool which functioned well on Android but on iOS it only worked for saved images.
- The app’s screen time schedule could not be set up for individual apps.
- Canopy’s location tracking which worked well during our tests.
Below, we take a deep dive into each feature and how it performed for us.
Smart filtering
Most parental control apps will have some type of content filter. However, Canopy’s approach is quite unique. With a patented Safesmart Internet Filter, they use machine learning technology to scan websites and apps in real-time and filter out content that might be deemed inappropriate.
Standard Protection is automatically enabled in the Canopy app. It allows Canopy to monitor and block inappropriate images, in particular pornography and full nudity.
On top of that, parents have the option to filter partial nudity, such as swimwear or lingerie.
The key benefit of this feature is that websites or apps won’t need to be fully blocked: pornographic content will simply be filtered out on your child’s device.
Unfortunately, we found that image-blocking in apps doesn’t work, forcing kids to use a web-based version of their favorite apps instead, something they’ll likely complain about.
Another thing we noticed is that the filter isn’t very exact: in some cases, content gets blocked while there is no nudity in the image. Of course, you might want your parental controls to be on the safe side, but it still shows that the technology doesn’t function optimally yet.
Website/app blocking
Besides the Screen Filter, it’s possible to blacklist specific URLs or block certain content categories altogether. This is similar to other parental control apps. Through our Bark review, for example, we found this app’s blocking features work much better.
In terms of app management, the Canopy parental control service has monitoring settings for all sorts of categories.
For each category, you can determine the filter level: unfiltered, allowed (child’s settings will apply), or blocked.
Unfortunately, our parent-child testing panel found big flaws in Canopy’s website blocking right away. Kids could easily bypass website blocks, no matter how many times we tested it. Whether blocked by URL or category, Canopy let us down on this front.
Additionally, while some apps could be blocked on a case-by-case basis, most social media apps could easily be accessed by the kids in our testing group. This, in turn, can compromise kids’ safety on the internet.
Parents looking for more comprehensive and effective website/app blocking features will be better off with a parental control app like Bark. Bark screens content across 18 categories and has very sensitive filters.
Sexting prevention tool
Another way that the Canopy parental control service tries to distinguish itself from other parental control apps is with its sexting prevention tool. It’s the only parental control app to offer such specific anti-sexting features.
In order to function, the feature needs access to your child’s camera. As soon as an inappropriate photo is detected or taken, Canopy immediately prevents child access by locking it. Your child will then receive a notification asking them to delete the photo or send it to their parents for approval.
On Android, this feature works alright. On iOS, however, things are a bit different. The tool only works for images that are saved on the device, which makes your child’s use of apps like Snapchat a lot riskier.
Keep in Mind:
The Canopy app does not have any text monitoring features. That means that text-based sexting is still possible. If you’re looking for parental software that lets you access your child’s text messages, we recommend looking into Bark or Qustodio.
Screen time schedule
Canopy also has screen-time management features. Parents can set daily or weekly rules and create a “downtime schedule” for their kids, which will block out access to the internet during a specific timeframe.
It’s a great way to limit access to the digital world for certain parts of the day, for example, school hours or bedtime. Unfortunately, we were disappointed to find that there are no time restrictions for individual apps. This would really fine-tune the feature.
On top of that, competitor parental control apps such as Qustodio will still allow kids access to emergency settings when their phones are locked. This is an added benefit for safety!
Location tracking
Most parental control apps will have some geo-tracking tools, some more precise than others. The Canopy parental control app has Location Awareness settings. You can set up alerts for when your child leaves or arrives at certain locations, such as school, sports clubs, or home.
Make sure you’ve enabled your location-sharing settings. To get notifications in real-time, you also have to toggle on your Canopy push messages.
Ease of Use: How User-Friendly is Canopy?
Any app is rendered useless if you can’t install it or navigate it with ease. While we had high expectations of Canopy, we’re forced to conclude that Canopy is not a very user-friendly app.
More specifically, during our tests, we observed that:
- The sign-up process was straightforward.
- The installation process on Windows was a bit challenging but after a few tries we managed to get there in the end and install Canopy.
- Even though the customer service team responded in good time, they couldn’t help us with installing the software and the information on the Canopy website was a bit outdated.
Canopy’s website and installation process
At first glance, the Canopy parental control website is well-designed and easy to navigate. On the homepage, you get an overview of Canopy’s main features and have the option to start your free trial right away.
A menu bar at the top lets you navigate through the site. You can get more information on how Canopy works, its mission, and pricing. On top of that, Canopy has a Blog page that has information on topics such as social media, conversations parents can have with kids and mental health.
If you scroll down on the website, you can find instruction guides, see FAQs, and access Support. Generally, you can find information easily.
How to install Canopy
Signing up for a Canopy account is easy enough:
- Enter your details on the Canopy Sign-Up page.
- Choose the plan that’s right for you.
- Enter your payment details.
- Your free trial will start automatically!
However, after creating an account, the problems within the Canopy system started piling up. We got sent a QR code to install Canopy on our device. Unfortunately, this did not work, and neither did the alternative link we received via email.
Trying a different route we found that, on Windows PC, we were not able to download the Canopy software at all. Each time we tried, we would get an error. Going through the installation guide led us to a 404 Error every time.
Reaching out to customer service did not provide us with a workable solution for installing the Canopy app on Windows.
One parent in our testing panel struggled to set up the Canopy software on their child’s device. Initially, they could not install the Canopy app due to potential security concerns.
The installation guide in the app would also generate a 404 Error.
Eventually, after simply trying many times, we did manage to install the Canopy app on two Android devices. However, the process was long and frustrating.
Using Canopy
The Canopy user experience can be summarized as erratic. Certain features are relatively easy to find and use, but others are not up to standard.
While we’re used to the fact that most parental controls don’t work as well on iOS devices, the Canopy app doesn’t run very smoothly on Android either. What’s even more frustrating is that the support guides are next to useless.
As a parent, you will receive Usage Reports which provide insight into which apps or websites your child is using on a regular basis.
One thing to note is that parents don’t get notifications when explicit content gets blocked or filtered out. You only receive this information when your child sends out an approval request.
Customer service
On the website, you can find support in Canopy’s Help Center and FAQ section. On top of that, you can reach out to the customer support team via email or give them a call (only in the United States).
While the responses we received from Canopy’s team over email were timely, we ultimately did not find the help we needed.
On top of that, the information on the website is outdated and the installation guides lead to error pages.
Data Privacy: How Does Canopy Use Your Data?
Out of all the parental control apps we’ve tested, the Canopy parental control app is not the most privacy-conscious. In order to run their services, they require and collect a lot of data, which is shared with unspecified third parties.
While you may opt out of certain data collection, this results in being unable to access certain features in the app. Parents who are concerned about their kids’ online data are better off with a service like Bark, which pays specific attention to data security.
This is what we observed while researching Canpopy’s privacy practices:
- The data that is collected can compromise children’s private information.
- The parental control app does not encrypt the information of its users.
- Canopy did encounter some software vulnerabilities in the past.
Privacy policy
When using the Canopy parental control app, parents and legal guardians consent to the collection of their children’s private data. As specified in the Canopy Privacy Policy, the following data is collected:
- Account data: Name, e-mail address, phone number, and “any additional Personal Information” that’s part of the account registration process.
- Location data: By using Canopy’s location services, you consent to your device location data being collected. It is possible to disable this in the settings.
- Log files: IP addresses, type of browser, date/time stamps, referring/exit pages, clicked pages, and “any other information your browser may send to us.” Canopy claims the data is used to analyze trends, run their services, gather demographic information, and track a user’s activity.
- Device data: Device type, device ID, app use (date and time stamps), crash reports, system activity, hardware settings, browser type, request URLs, and installed apps.
- Content: The privacy policy states that Canopy “may collect certain content (including pictures) received by the device and/or created and/or stored on the device.” You can adjust permissions in the settings.
Moreover, Canopy’s privacy policy specifies that – with consent – telephone logs will be collected, as well as your contact with customer support. Google Analytics and cookies are also used to collect data.
Though it’s standard practice for many apps to collect this type of data, the Canopy app does not provide the highest level of data security. Unlike Bark, they don’t put specific focus on the fact that the app collects children’s data, nor do they have encrypted servers, as Bark does.
Software vulnerabilities
In 2021, a software vulnerability was found in Canopy’s app: hackers would be able to plant JavaScript in the parent portal and get access to all the features within the parent dashboard.
Craig Young, a researcher at Tripwire discovered the security flaw after receiving an advertisement for Canopy from his children’s school. He found that an external user would be able to inject code into the parent domain and gain control over it.
Not only would this allow hackers to control and monitor any linked devices belonging to the kids, they would also get access to a lot of personal user data.
Canopy has stated that it has addressed the vulnerabilities. Even so, parents worried about external actors getting access to sensitive data, would do well to invest in a solid antivirus solution. This will ease some worry about potential harm to you or your children’s devices.
Conclusion: Canopy Has Potential But is Flawed
At VPNOverview, we’re always on the lookout for advanced technologies. In theory, the Canopy parental control app has a lot to offer: content filtering based on artificial intelligence, sexting prevention, and screen-time scheduling.
Unfortunately, in reality, we found that – at the moment – the features don’t work as well as they should. Website blocking was largely ineffective and the app was a chore to install. Moreover, the Canopy app requires a lot of permissions on your devices.
With other excellent parental control apps on the market, such as Bark and Qustodio, we can’t wholeheartedly recommend the Canopy app to eliminate explicit content online. We’ll keep a close eye on any future developments to see if Canopy is able to climb the ranks.
We do appreciate that the subscription plans are relatively affordable and that there’s a seven-day free trial you can make use of. If you’d like to have a look at Canopy, anyway, you can click the button below and start your trial right away.
For more information on other popular parental control apps, have a look at these related articles:
- Kaspersky Safe Kids Review: Affordable Parental Control
- Qustodio Review: Is It the Best Parental Control App?
- Norton Family Review: Will It Keep Your Family Safe?
Do you have any questions about Canopy or parental control apps? Have a look at our FAQ below!
Security flaws were found in earlier versions of the Canopy app. The company claims that these issues have been resolved and, generally speaking, the app should be safe now. Even so, we did get a few security notifications when installing Canopy, which wasn’t very reassuring.
No, Canopy does not have a text monitoring feature. Parents looking for this feature, should have a look at our Qustodio review.
Parents will get a notification if their child has tried to access a blocked app or website. However, they don’t get to see any details unless the child requests permission to visit the website or app. Moreover, when testing Canopy, we found that the notifications did not come through accurately.
