Your kid thinks YouTube is down. They read a book instead.
Downtime blocks apps at the network level in a way that looks exactly like a natural outage. No “blocked by your parent” screens. No fights. They shrug and move on.
What your kid sees
This site can't be reached
youtube.com took too long to respond.
Try:
Checking the connection
Checking the proxy and the firewall
Running Windows Network Diagnostics
ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT
Looks identical to when YouTube is actually down. Because to their device, it is.
They'll Google it. That's the point.
Here's exactly what happens next — and why it works every time.
1.YouTube won’t load
They see “This site can’t be reached” with the error code ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT. Standard Chrome error page. Nothing suspicious.
2.They Google the error
They search “ERR_CONNECTION_TIMED_OUT YouTube.” Google returns millions of results from people with the exact same problem. Because this is a real error code that happens every day.
3.They check DownDetector
There are always people reporting issues on DownDetector. Always. Every major app has complaints 24/7. Your kid sees other people having the same problem and thinks: “Yep, it’s down.”
4.They try again later
They shrug, close the tab, and go do something else. Maybe they try again in an hour. Maybe they forget. Either way — you win.
Zero technical knowledge required. You don't need to understand DNS, networking, or how the internet works. If you can follow 3 steps and copy-paste two numbers, you're done. Your grandma could set this up.
The first parental control that actually works
Traditional parental controls show a big “BLOCKED BY YOUR PARENT” screen. Your kid sees it, gets mad, and spends 20 minutes figuring out how to bypass it. They always figure it out.
Downtime is different. We block apps at the DNS level so they return a connection timeout — the exact same error you see when a website is genuinely down. There's nothing to bypass because there's nothing to see.
Other parental controls
“This content has been blocked by your parent. Contact your administrator to unblock.” Your kid screenshots it, posts it to their group chat, and resents you until college.
Downtime
“Ugh, TikTok is down again.” They close the app. They text their friend about it. They go find something else to do. They never suspect a thing.
You
Sipping coffee. Reading a book. Not having a fight about screen time for the first time in three years. Living your best life. Parenting on easy mode.
Setup is stupidly easy
If you can copy-paste two numbers, you can set up Downtime.
Pick what’s “down”
~30 secondsToggle apps from our dashboard. TikTok? Gone. YouTube? Vanished. Roblox? Poof. Pick by app or nuke entire categories at once.
Change one setting on your router
~90 secondsWe give you two numbers. You paste them into your router’s DNS field. We have step-by-step guides for every major router — Xfinity, AT&T, Google Nest, Spectrum, TP-Link, and more.
Sip coffee. Read a book. Exist.
~foreverEvery device on your Wi-Fi is now filtered. Your kid opens TikTok and sees “connection timed out.” They shrug. They go outside. You win at parenting.
That's it. No app to install. No profiles to configure on each device. No MDM certificates. Change the DNS on your router and every phone, tablet, laptop, gaming console, and smart TV on your network is covered.
What happens when TikTok is “down”
Actual things that happen when kids can't mindlessly scroll
Meanwhile, you're on the couch with a glass of wine. Nobody is screaming. This is the dream.
65+ apps. 10 categories. One toggle.
Block individual apps or nuke entire categories with a single tap.
Social Media
11 appsVideo
6 appsGaming
6 appsStreaming
8 appsMusic
6 appsMessaging
5 appsAI Tools
6 appsGame Consoles
7 appsAdult Content
3 appsBypass Prevention
3 appsAnd we're adding more every week. Have a request? We ship fast.
Yes, it works on game consoles too
Block online multiplayer but keep single-player working. Kill the eShop but let them download game updates. Granular, per-function control.
Nintendo Switch
PlayStation 5
Xbox
Roblox
Each feature is a separate toggle. Block Fortnite online but let them play Zelda offline. That kind of control.
Designed to be invisible
Every detail is engineered so your kid never suspects a thing.
Looks like a real outage
Blocked apps show the exact same "connection timed out" error that happens during actual outages. Chrome, Safari, Firefox — all show their native error pages.
Everything else works perfectly
Google, homework sites, school portals, Wikipedia — all fine. Only the apps you choose go "down." Selective outages happen all the time.
No app installed on their device
Nothing for them to find, nothing to uninstall, no suspicious profiles in Settings. It’s all at the router level. Completely invisible.
Works on every device automatically
iPhone, Android, iPad, laptop, gaming console, smart TV — anything connected to your Wi-Fi is covered. No per-device setup.
Instant on, instant off
Toggle apps from your phone in real time. Set a timer for 30 minutes, 1 hour, or until bedtime. Changes take effect in seconds.
They can’t Google around it
We block public DNS providers and VPN-enabled browsers too. No Tor, no Opera VPN, no switching to Google DNS to bypass it.
Even if they figure it out? You still win.
Let's say your kid is a genius. They figure out you're behind it. Doesn't matter. Here's why.
Total control from your phone
Open the app. Toggle TikTok off. Done. Toggle it back on at 7pm. Done. You have god-mode control over every app on your entire network, anytime, from anywhere. At work. At the grocery store. Lying in bed.
They can't undo it
Even if they know it's you, they can't change the router DNS without your router password. They can't install a VPN because we block those too. They can't switch to Google DNS because we block that. Checkmate.
Works anywhere, anytime
At a restaurant and the kids won't put their phones down? Block everything from the table. On vacation? Set a schedule before you leave. Your control travels with you because it's all in the cloud.
Set it and forget it
Create schedules that run automatically. No social media on school nights after 8pm. YouTube only on weekends. Gaming off during homework hours. It just happens, every day, without you lifting a finger.
You're the parent. Act like it.
(But like, the chill kind of parent. The one drinking coffee while the kids read books.)
Quick timers for homework time
One tap. Everything goes “down.” Timer expires, everything comes back. No arguments, no negotiations.
Questions you're probably asking
Will my kid figure out it’s me?
No. There’s no block screen, no app on their device, no notification. The app just... doesn’t load. Same as when Instagram actually goes down. They’ll check DownDetector, see other people complaining (there always are), and move on with their life.
What if they switch to cellular data?
Then they’re off your Wi-Fi and the blocks don’t apply. But most kids are on Wi-Fi at home, and you can combine Downtime with a simple cellular data limit on their phone plan for bulletproof coverage.
Does this block the whole internet?
No. Only the specific apps you choose. Google, school websites, email, and everything else works perfectly. You pick what’s “down” — everything else stays up.
Do I need to install anything on their phone?
Nope. Zero. Nothing. It works at the router level, so every device on your Wi-Fi is automatically covered. Their phone, their iPad, their laptop, the smart TV, the gaming console — all filtered with zero device setup.
How is this different from router-level blocking?
Most routers can block websites, but they show an obvious “blocked” page. Downtime uses Cloudflare’s Gateway to return connection timeouts instead — which looks identical to a genuine outage. That’s the difference.
Does it work on gaming consoles?
Yes. Nintendo Switch, PS5, Xbox, and Roblox — with granular per-function control. Block online multiplayer but keep single-player. Block the eShop but allow game updates. You choose.
Ready for some peace and quiet?
Set it up in 2 minutes. Your kid thinks the internet is having a bad day. You finally get to drink your coffee while it's still hot.
Get 90 minutes free →90 minutes free · No credit card required · 2 minute setup