Plus and Circle Parental Controls App User Guide

Circle Home Plus & Circle Parental
Controls App
User Guide

Plus and Circle Parental Controls App

Meet Circle ®
Thanks for joining the Circle community.
We’re here to help families like yours find balance in today’s digital world. This guide has been designed to guide you along the way in using Circle to manage content and time spent online.
If you run into questions or issues, don’t hesitate to reach out.

We’re here to help!
— The Circle team
support.meetcircle.com
help@meetcircle.com

Getting familiar with Circle

Feature Description

Pause the Internet ® ►| Pause the Internet® with the push of a button
Unpause
Resuming Internet access after being paused
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Location►| Keep track of your family and their mobile devices.
See where your family’s mobile devices are at a point in time with the tap of a button. Kids get notified when you request their location.
Rewards►| Provide extra online time for your family
Usage►| Compare online time for each profile across all devices
Popular Apps & Websites
A popular online service made up of sites and apps
Site
An individual source of online content
Category
Collection of sites/platforms sharing a common purpose
History ►| Detailed breakdown of every site visited by a profile across all devices
Bedtime►| Schedule overnight offline time for each family member to make late- night scrolling a thing of the past
Filter ►| Ability to match each family member’s age and interests with age- appropriate online content
Manage
Based on a set of pre-determined rules, network traffic is controlled
Unmanage
Online content can be freely accessed, and it won’t contribute to daily Time Limits or appear in Usage & History
Allowed
Content is tracked and managed by Circle
Not Allowed
Content from this source is blocked by Circle
Time Limits►| Limit daily online time for platforms, categories, and total online time across all devices
Focus Time►| Preset time offline for the important moments like homework or dinner with the family

Term Description

Device| Any Internet-connected equipment (smartphone, tablet, laptop, gaming console, etc.); plus smart
home appliances (“IoT” devices): smart TVs, Wi-Fi speakers, and thermostats
Kid device
Any Internet-connected device that you manage with the Circle App, not just your kids’ devices Unassigned device
Devices not assigned to a profile are automatically unmanaged by Circle
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Profiles| Circle settings are shared across all devices assigned to a family member profile
Network| Wi-Fi, ethernet, or cellular data source used to access the Internet
Router| Device that distributes Internet to multiple devices, usually over Wi- Fi

Getting started

The Circle App
Install the Circle Parental Controls App
Apple iOS 12 or newer
Android 6.0 (Marshmallow) or newer
To find the app, search Circle Parental Controls in the App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android)

Follow the in-app instructions to continue

1. Create your Circle Account
2. Set up the App
3. Set up Circle Home Plus

Using the Circle App

The Home Screen

Menu
The Menu provides quick access to additional account Settings for your Circle login and hardware, access to Legal and Help resources, and the opportunity to tell your friends and family about Circle through our Refer a Friend program.

Profiles

Create profiles for every family member, so their Circle settings are shared across all devices.

To view a profile
Tap on a profile from the home screen.
From here you can see their name, photo, and a summary of their Circle settings.
Tap edit in the top right corner of the screen to change the name or picture.
You can also delete the profile from here.
Tap done to save changes or cancel to go back without saving your changes.

Profile features
To view or makes changes to the profile settings, tap any of the features displayed in the profile.
To learn about the features listed on the profile screen, continue to the next section.
To add a mobile device to the profile, tap on Devices and then add a mobile device.

Devices

From the home screen, you can find a list of all Circle devices by tapping the devices icon in the top right portion of the screen.
From the profile screen, you can find a list of all assigned devices by selecting devices.

Tap on any device from the device list to see the device settings, where you’ll find:
The assigned profile (edit by tapping the text)
The device name (edit by tapping the text)
The manufacturer and device ID — which can help you identify the device if you can’t figure out which is which
If it’s a kid device (with the Circle App installed and configured), you’ll see the VPN status.
The option to remove device, which deletes this device from Circle
If you don’t want to manage this device with Circle, set it to unmanaged.
A pause button, just for this single device

Dashboard

The dashboard is where your family can check their online time for the day, and find other helpful information.

Finding the dashboard
If you’ve assigned a family member’s device to a profile, they can use the dashboard from the Circle App or a web browser by visiting dashboard.meetcircle.com.

What’s on the dashboard
On the dashboard, you’ll see information for the various Circle features you’ve enabled for that family member. There’s also a general profile card, where you can see the device name associated with Circle. Finding the device name can be helpful for identifying devices if you’re not sure which is which.
Dashboard push notifications
Push notifications let your family members know about changes to their Internet access throughout the day from Circle. They’ll be notified about Circle features like Pause, Time Limits, Focus Times, Bedtimes, and more.

Features

Parental controls, right at your fingertips
Simplify how you manage your family’s online screen time. Circle’s features let you set limits, filter content, and keep tabs on every connected device.

Filter

Set online content filters that match each family member’s age and interests. When setting a filter, you first must select a filter level as a starting place, which you can always customize to be the right fit for each family member.
To edit a family member’s filter, tap on their profile, then select filter.

Filter levels
Kid
Grants access to kid-safe experiences, like the education category, but filters out content not appropriate for children (most restrictive level)

Teen
Grants access to most general-use platforms and categories, without mature or adult-oriented content

Adult
Grants access to nearly all platforms, categories, and apps, though explicit content is filtered out by default

None
Means that Circle won’t filter content, track usage or history, or limit time online for any assigned devices

Filter settings
After you select a filter level, you can customize it by setting content to allowed, not allowed, or unmanaged by tapping the text-box across from the platform or category name.

even if Circle is set on Pause, Bedtime, or Focus Time. Traffic to any unmanaged site does not count toward Time Limits.
Custom Sites| Tapping the Custom Sites section on the right lets you create a filter setting for an individual site. Follow the steps to type in the name of the site and pick a filter setting for it.

Privacy & safety

Safe search| Filters sexually-explicit content from search results in Google, Bing and DuckDuckGo.
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YouTube restricted| When enabled, enforces an optional YouTube setting to filter out potentially mature videos and livestreaming.

Categories
Category descriptions are intended to describe the types of content Circle will filter.

Entertainment| Arts & Entertainment
Visual arts, literature, humor, film, arts venues, and more
Music
Audio streaming and downloading, artist sites, and more
Online Games
Video games and board game sites
Sports & Recreation
Sports media, professional teams, and recreation
Video
Video streaming and downloading
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School & work| Business
Employment, job postings, finance, and industry services
Education
Instructional content, teaching, educational institutions, and career prep
Science & Technology
Physical and social sciences as well as computers and artificial intelligence
Social| Chat & Forums
Messaging services, online chat, bulletin boards, and forums
Social Media
Personal and professional networking communities
Services| App Stores & Downloads
Digital software distribution for apps, programs, and more
Email
Electronic mail providers
Lifestyle| Blogs & Personal Sites
Blogging platforms and sites with personal content
Government & Politics
Government services, politics, lobbying, and military
Health
Personal health and fitness
Home & Family
Cooking, parenting, home-decorating, and more
Issues & Lifestyles
Social issues, philosophy, religion, and more
News
Journalism, commentary, and other reporting
Online Shopping
Ecommerce retailers and classified ads
Travel
Maps, travel, and tourism
Photo
Photography information and sharing
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Adult| Dating
Online dating and match-making
Explicit Content
Graphic and explicit adult content
Gambling
Betting sites, lotteries, casinos, racetracks and more
Mature
Adult-specific content (age 18+ or 21+)
VPNs & Proxies
Internet privacy and network routing services

Certain categories are not allowed by default based on the filter level set. For a full list of apps and sites that Circle covers, please read more.
View Full List

Time Limits

Limit online time for individual apps, sites, or categories. You can set limits by day, category of content or for individual apps and sites.

To set Time Limits
Tap on a profile from the home screen, then select Time Limits from the feature list.
Turn Time Limits on by tapping the enable switch in the top right.
Set an all-day cap by tapping Daily Time Limit at the top of the list.
Set an all-day cap by tapping the selector beneath the profile picture.
Create an alternate schedule for certain days of the week by tapping the add weekend icon at the top of the screen.
Manage time as a reward instead of giving a set limit every day by selecting by reward only for a Time Limit.

Bedtime

Make late-night scrolling a thing of the past. Bedtime shuts off Internet access for every device assigned to a profile through the night, so everybody in your family can get the sleep they need without distraction. You can even set a separate weekend Bedtime!
When setting Bedtime, the day of the week represents the night a Bedtime begins. Typical weekday Bedtime spans Sunday to Thursday, with weekend nights on Friday and Saturday.

To set a Bedtime
Tap on a profile from the home screen, then select Bedtime from the feature list.
Turn Bedtime on by tapping the enable switch in the top right.
Set the Bedtime by tapping on the days to toggle them on or off, and tap
Bedtime and Awake times to set the clock.
Tap add weekend to set an alternate
Bedtime for certain days of the week.
Press save to finish.

Focus Time

Create a customized screen time schedule that benefits everyone in your family. Preset time offline for the important moments like practicing piano or dinner with the family.

To set an Focus Time
Tap on a profile from the home screen, then select Focus Time from the feature list.
Tap the “+” or select from your existing Focus Time below.
Set the Focus Time by typing in a name for the Focus Time, selecting which days you’d like to activate, and scroll through the start and end times to set the clock.
Press done to finish, then save to keep all your changes for this profile.

Pause the Internet ®

Pause the Internet ® with the tap of a button for individual family members or the whole house. Tapping again will unpause to resume Internet. Unmanaged devices will always maintain Internet access.

Home Pause
To pause all Circle devices at once, press the pause button on the home screen, then confirm. Press the same button again to unpause.

Profile Pause
To pause a family member, tap on their profile from the home screen, then tap the pause button in the top-left corner of the screen. Press the same button again to unpause.

Device Pause
To pause a single device, tap the devices icon in the top-right of the home screen, then tap on a device from the list, then press the pause button on the bottom of the screen. Press the same button again to unpause.

Location

Find the current location for a family member’s mobile devices. To use Location, the devices you want to locate must have the Circle App and VPN installed with location services enabled. Notification services must also be enabled on the parents’ and kids’ devices. Additionally, Location will only work once the mobile device is assigned to the kid’s profile that you wish to location.

To locate a family member’s device

Tap on a profile from the home screen, then select location from the feature list.
You might have to pick from a list of devices to locate.
Wait for Circle to locate the device (this may take a minute or two).
When the device has been found, you’ll see a marker on the map.
At the bottom of the screen, you’ll see the time when the location was received.
Tap refresh to see their location again.
Locating a device will only work if location services are enabled on the device you are locating, and Circle will notify you if this is the reason a device cannot be located.
Circle does not store a history of previous locations.

History

History displays a chronological list of sites viewed by a profile.
Toggle between Filtered and Visited to see which sites were prevented or accessed.

To see a family member’s History
Tap on a profile from the home screen, then select History in the feature list.
Select visited to see sites that a family member accessed.
Toggle over to filtered to see sites that Circle blocked because of a family member’s filter settings.

To take action on a History entry, tap on it and select from the following options
Visit website, which opens your web browser and takes you to the home page of the site (not all sites support this feature).
Set as allowed
Set as not allowed
Set as unmanaged

You can edit any of these custom filters by selecting Filter from the profile features list, then tapping custom filter on the bottom of the screen.

Usage

Compare time online today, last week, or months past while viewing the total time spent online per category and platform.
See a list of sites and platforms by tapping on a category.
A pop-up menu will allow you to take action on a particular category that contributed total online time.
You may notice total online time does not always match the sum of usage from visible categories. This is because each platform’s algorithm is unique and may contribute differently to active screen time versus background traffic.

To see a family member’s Usage
To see a family member’s Usage, Select Usage in the feature list.
At the top of the screen, you can select between usage by day, week, or month.
Next, you’ll see a summary of total time.
Below that, you can scroll from the current period and into past usage.
Take action on a Usage entry by following the same steps outlined above for History.
In addition to the popular apps and websites visible by default, Circle can help you manage 100s more through Usage.
Learn more about hidden apps and websites.

Rewards

Rewards are an easy way to send family members extra online time for an individual day. Rewards expire at midnight, so original time limits are reset the following day.

To send a Reward
Tap on a profile from the home screen, then tap the star in the top right corner, or select Rewards from the feature list.
Pick from three types of rewards: Extend Time Limit, Late Bedtime, or Disable Focus Time.
Set the Reward based on the existing settings, and press send to finish.

Types of Rewards
Extend Time Limit to add additional time to an existing Time Limit
Late Bedtime to set a new start time for that night’s Bedtime
Disable Focus Time to remove a regularly scheduled Focus Time

To edit or cancel a Reward
Tap on a profile from the home screen and select Rewards from the feature list.
To edit a Reward, tap the edit existing rewards button to make the appropriate changes.
To cancel a Reward, tap the edit existing rewards button and swipe to delete it from the list.

Circle Home Plus device

Wi-Fi devices & Circle Home Plus

Circle Home Plus pairs directly with your router and inspects all the non- encrypted Internet traffic coming through your home network.
You won’t need to install software or adjust settings on your devices to manage them.

LED| Solid light
On & paired
Solid off
Off
Double blink
Not paired correctly, usually needs a reboot| Slowly blinking
On, but not paired
Quickly blinking
Resetting, low battery or other internal error
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Power Button| To power on
Press once| To power off
Hold for ten seconds, or until LED turns off
Battery| Internal battery keeps Home Plus online when USB power is unavailable

When you set up Circle Home Plus, you’ll have access to a whole new group of connected devices to manage with Circle: your family’s Wi-Fi  devices.

New devices joining Wi-Fi
Circle Home Plus will discover new Wi-Fi devices when they join your network. You can choose if these devices are set to the Home profile or left
as Unmanaged.

The home profile
The home profile is where all shared family devices live. You set a baseline filter, plus any Focus Times of Bedtimes to apply to all these devices. You can use this home profile any way you’d like by assigning the devices that make sense for your home.

Network gear & smart home devices
Leave all network gear and smart home devices unmanaged. Any interference with Circle Hone Plus may cause unexpected issues with these utilities and services. Make sure mesh Wi-Fi extenders and network fabric as well as Internet of Things (“loT”) devices, like smart appliances, are never assigned to a profile.

Troubleshooting Circle Home Plus

If you don’t have a Circle Home Plus, open the Circle App and press get Circle Home Plus from the home screen menu.
If Circle Home Plus isn’t pairing with your network via ethernet, make sure the mobile device with the Circle App (most likely your smartphone) is connected to the network created by your router. This way, Circle can verify that the Circle Home Plus you’ve plugged in is associated with your Circle account.
If you don’t have a spare ethernet port in your router, just skip ethernet pairing by tapping pair with Wi-Fi instead during setup.
If you skip ethernet pairing, you’ll have to connect your phone to the Circle Home Plus hotspot. Follow the instructions in the app, and make sure that you stay connected to the Circle Home Plus hotspot, even though you won’t have an Internet connection on your phone for the moment.
If Circle Home Plus isn’t pairing with your network via Wi-Fi, make sure that you’ve connected to the Circle Home Plus hotspot (if the app required you to do so) before continuing, or that you’ve correctly entered your Wi-Fi password credentials into the Circle App.
If you paired Circle Home Plus over ethernet but don’t use Wi-Fi, or you’re unable to pair wirelessly, just tap skip Wi-Fi pairing during setup.
If your Circle Home Plus seems to be creating problems for your home network, try temporarily disabling it from the settings screen (found by
tapping the menu button in the top-left corner of the home screen, then settings, then disable Circle Home Plus).
If Circle Home Plus is offline or not working, try rebooting your router and Circle. Set up again by opening the menu and select Remove Circle Home Plus then Resetting Circle.
If the problem goes away after you’ve disabled Circle Home Plus, check to make sure that all networking equipment (like a mesh network extender or other network fabric) and smart home devices (like smart thermostats and light bulbs) are set to unmanaged.

Helpful resources to get the most from Circle:

FAQs
Feature Guides
Networking & Compatibility
Troubleshooting Resources

Support | support.meetcircle.com
Press | press@meetcircle.com

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