Want to Be the Most Unpopular Parent? There's an App for That

There's an app for that. Parents are no longer ignored with this app.

ByABC News
August 14, 2014, 2:18 PM

— -- A Texas mom has created an app that helps parents keep their kids on a virtual leash -- and will likely have many teens saying: "But, mom!"

The "Ignore No More" app gives parents the ability to take control of their children's smartphones when they believe their calls and texts are being ignored.

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Sharon Standifird, a Houston mother and military veteran, said she created the app after she became frustrated and worried when her children did not answer her calls.

"We need to develop an app that just shuts their phone completely down and they can't even use it," she told ABC's Houston-owned station KTRK-TV. "I got on the Internet and I literally just started researching how to develop an app."

Several months later, she debuted the "Ignore No More" app for Android devices.

When she wants to lock her son's phone, Standifird opens the app and taps his name. She then enters an unlock code twice and then presses "Lock Bradley's Phone."

PHOTO: Houston veteran and mother, Sharon Standifird, developed the "Ignore No More" app which is designed to let parents deactivate their kid's phones.
Houston veteran and mother, Sharon Standifird, developed the "Ignore No More" app which is designed to let parents deactivate their kid's phones.

The activation of the app will take away a child's ability to play games, call friends and surf the Internet. The ability to call 911 will always remain intact on the phone, according its description in the Google Play store.

So how is Bradley, and other teenagers who are locked out, able to get back on their parents' good side?

With a single tap, they are provided with a list of contacts they can call to get the password to unlock the phone.

"I thought it was a good idea, but for other people, not me," Bradley Standifird told KTRK.

So what's the best hack for getting around the app?

Just answer the phone when mom or dad calls.