Skip to main content

This app will shut down everything on your phone until you call your mom back

ignore no more shuts down phone
Never underestimate your mom, kids — especially if she learns how to code. Sharon Standifird’s son knows this all too well. He didn’t always answer his mother’s calls as quickly as she might have liked, so she figured out a way to make sure he called her back ASAP when he missed a call. Standifird created her own Android app called Ignore No More, which gives your mom or dad the power to literally shut down every function on your phone — except the ability to call the parental unit back or 911 — until you cave and call them back.

Many teenagers can withstand 10 missed calls from mom without batting an eyelash, but when you take away Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and everything else in one fell swoop, most won’t last five minutes without calling dear old mom and dad to beg for their freedom back. Ignore No More does just that.

Recommended Videos

Related: LG launches KizOn, a wearable device that lets parents track their kids

All parents have to do is set up an account, add their kids, and make sure the app is installed on each child’s device, so that they can remotely control their kids’ smartphones whenever the youngsters don’t answer their calls or messages. To shut down a kid’s phone, mom or dad just need to tap on their son or daughter’s name, enter an unlock code twice, and voila — the unresponsive kid’s phone goes dark. In order to unlock their device, the teen must call one of the people listed on the approved contacts list, which may include anyone the parent chooses.

The only difficult part is getting Ignore No More onto a kid’s phone. Assuming they’ve got a passcode, parents won’t even be able to unlock their kids’ phone, let alone install the app. Even if the kid’s phone is unsecured, parents still have to know the code for purchasing apps on the device to install Ignore No More on the device. This may be easy enough for parents whose kids are still in the house, but those with grown kids or ones in college may have a harder time of it.

Of course, sneaky and clever parents could just stick Ignore No More onto a brand new smartphone, so as to trick their unsuspecting kids into thinking the Trojan horse is a great present.

Ignore No More is available for download on the Google Play Store, but it will cost you $2 for each device you install it on. Standifird says she’s already working on an iOS version of the app, so don’t fret iPhone parents!

Malarie Gokey
Former Digital Trends Contributor
As DT's Mobile Editor, Malarie runs the Mobile and Wearables sections, which cover smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and…
These Android apps are spying on you — and there’s no easy way to stop them
Illustration of a giant eye stalking through a phone

Android’s security woes need no introduction, but another threat that hasn’t received its fair share of awareness relates to spyware and stalkerware apps. These apps can secretly be installed on a victim’s phone to monitor their activity and can be exploited to harass victims of domestic abuse and engage in online stalking. All someone needs is physical access to the victim's phone to install these apps, which is not too difficult in cases of domestic abuse.

Call it an app-fueled version of AirTag stalking, but on steroids, because these spyware apps can steal everything including messages, call logs, emails, photos, and videos. Some can even activate the microphone and the camera, and secretly transfer these recordings to a remote server where the abuser can access it. Since Google Play's policies don't allow stalking apps, these apps are sold via third-party websites and need to be sideloaded.

Read more
The best voice-recording apps for iPhone and Android in 2023
A man uses a smartphone on the street.

Microphones on smartphones are often much better than people give them credit for being. Whether someone is looking to start a podcast, record some music, or simply find a place to record their thoughts, recording apps will capture whatever sounds you need with relatively solid quality.

The best smartphones today have recording apps preinstalled right out of the box, but sometimes they leave a little bit to be desired for those looking for something more out of a voice recorder. Luckily, there are plenty of excellent apps that you can download that have features that your built-in voice recording app might not.

Read more
What is the Temu app? Here’s everything you need to know
Temu logo on an iPhone.

Following an increased marketing push starting in 2023, the Temu app has started to pick up some solid momentum that's driven many shoppers to want to check it out. As new marketplaces start to make their way into the mainstream, however, there's usually a healthy amount of skepticism toward them.

Although it's always a good impulse to be cautious about putting sensitive information into any app, here's everything you need to know about Temu — and if you truly need to be careful.
What is Temu?

Read more