“Hello, Number Neighbour” is a recurring Internet meme and “Challenge” that pops up every few years on Social Media. It invites phone users to text or call numbers on either side of their own with witty comments with a view to posting the resulting conversation online. And with each Christmas bringing a flood of new first mobile phones to children it’s something parents need to be aware of this before it
happens to their child.
What is a Number Neighbour?
A Number Neighbour is someone who shares an adjacent or close mobile number to yours. So if
your phone number ends with 786, your number neighbours have the same number ending in 787 or 785. Sometimes it’s referred to as a “text-door neighbour” or “neighbour number.” In adult hands, it’s quite likely that such an activity would be understood and brushed off as harmless, and an activity that is little more than a ‘bit of fun’. Unfortunately, in modern times with the average child now getting their first mobile phone at around 8 or 9 years of age, such a conversation – either started by the child or received by the child – is quite likely to cause confusion or distress. In some cases, the conversation may roll into a longer-term event with very unpredictable or undesirable consequences.
ParentShield is the only mobile network that is designed to be totally safe for use by Children of
any age. They have introduced “Block Number Neighbours,” which is a function that can be turned on by parents in their powerful ParentShield Portal, and instantly blocks ALL communication – that’s calls and
These things have innocent intentions, but unfortunately, it’s a vector for less benign conversations leading to children becoming stressed or upset, and may not tell parents what has happened.
Paul Stevenson
texts, from a range of numbers on either side or similar to their child’s number. Any attempt to text or be texted by any of these numbers will fail – and the attempted text message will instantly be available for review by the parent, so they can have a timely and appropriate conversation with the child about their phone usage.
Conversations that ‘turn bad’ can become very stressful for young children and may cause them to become secretive about their phone usage for fear that parents might confiscate their phone. Such secrecy is harmful as it removes the ability to have timely and appropriate conversations with the child about their interactions with others.
Calls are also completely impossible to or from the number neighbour list as well. it’s instant and can be affected without any apps being installed on the phone, and without the need to touch the child’s phone. The blocking list is generated automatically by ParentShield’s technology but can be edited should a sibling or friend happen to have a number that is numerically similar to that of their child.
Number Neighbour blocking is just one of the many features that ParentShield adds to their unique all-network MVNO service to make the service the only one that is completely safe for children. In its most restrictive mode, the child’s phone is only able to communicate with Parents’ phones, and time and caller restrictions can be relaxed as the child grows in confidence and responsibility up to the point where it behaves exactly as any ‘adult’ network, but still maintaining monitoring and control capabilities by parents.
The ‘hands-off’ approach to controlling a child’s phone that the ParentShield Portal provides is particularly appreciated by the Network’s customers as it removes the common stress point of having to take the phone off the child to make changes or modifications. Being network-side controls everything is done remotely and securely and will work as well on a basic feature phone as it will on a smartphone.
About ParentShield
ParentShield is the UK’s only Mobile Network designed specifically with children in mind, incorporating a wide range of tools – from call recording to keyword alerts – that allow parents to oversee their child’s phone usage without invading their privacy. The great thing is that it can work with any unlocked feature phone, smartphone or smartwatch and does not require any app or parental controls to be set on the device. Its features are handled remotely, allowing for optimal convenience while kids retain their independence. The SIMs work across the UK and beyond.
Being a SIM-based network-side service, parents can provide ANY unlocked phone to their child and give them a totally normal mobile phone experience without the stigma of being a locked or crippled “parental control” phone that you would be embarrassed to use in the playground.
Disclosure: collaborative post
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