Safe on Social Launches Smartphone Readiness Model as US Parents and Schools Confront Growing Digital-Access Challenge

New US i itiative gives families a st uctu ed way to decide yes, yes with limits, o ot yet, based o demo st ated eadi ess athe tha age o pee p essu e.

ALEXANDRIA, VA / ACCESS Newswi e / Octobe 6, 2026 / Safe o Social I c., powe ed by Ct l+Shft, today lau ched The Sma tpho e Readi ess P oject i the U ited States, i t oduci g a st uctu ed model desig ed to help families dete mi e whethe a child is eady fo a sma tpho e, app o , digital platfo m based o demo st ated judgme t a d espo sibility – athe tha age o pee p essu e alo e.

The p oject does ot assume that eve y child should have a sma tpho e. Waiti g is a legitimate outcome, a d fo ma y child e it is the ight o e. Families who have chose to delay, i cludi g th ough commu ity pledges, ca use the p oject to p epa e a child fo a y othe device, sma t toy, o app fo the day access is eve tually g a ted, a d to explai why the a swe is ” ot yet” i the mea time.

The lau ch comes as ew US esea ch poi ts to a wide i g challe ge a ou d child e ‘s tech ology use. Pew Resea ch Ce te fou d that 42% of US pa e ts of child e 12 a d you ge say they could be doi g bette at ma agi g thei child’s sc ee time, isi g to 47% amo g pa e ts of child e ages 8 to 12. Pew also fou d that 61% of child e 12 a d you ge use a sma tpho e, acco di g to thei pa e ts, with use, i cludi g o a pa e t’s device, eachi g oughly th ee-qua te s amo g 11- a d 12-yea -olds. The atio ally ep ese tative study su veyed 3,054 US pa e ts i May 2025. Pew Resea ch Ce te

Schools a e seei g the othe side of the same issue. Natio al Ce te fo Educatio Statistics data eleased i 2025 fou d that 72% of US public-school leade s believe stude t cellpho e use egatively affects me tal health, 73% say it egatively affects atte tio spa s a d, 53% epo t a egative impact o academic pe fo ma ce. Seve ty-seve pe ce t of public schools al eady p ohibit cellpho e use du i g class, although o ly 30% p ohibit use th oughout classes a d the wide school day. Natio al Ce te fo Educatio Statistics

Fo Safe o Social, those figu es poi t to a b oade behavio al- isk questio : what happe s befo e a child is ha ded u est icted access to the device?

The Sma tpho e Readi ess P oject is desig ed to make that decisio obse vable.

I stead of a pa e t bei g fo ced i to a immediate “yes” o ” o,” the child esea ches the pho e, app, o platfo m they wa t a d develops a fo mal busi ess case fo access. They must ide tify pote tial isks, u de sta d p ivacy setti gs, establish a safety a d time-ma ageme t pla , a d explai what they would do i situatio s such as u wa ted co tact. The family ca the dete mi e whethe the a swe is yes, yes with limits, o ot yet. The busi ess case is a test, ot a pitch. The decisio always stays with the pa e t. A pe suasive p ese tatio does ot ea a device, a d ma y child e will discove th ough the p ocess exactly whe e they a e ot eady yet. That is the poi t. A child who ca ot calmly explai the ules, the isks, a d what they would do whe somethi g goes w o g is showi g thei pa e t the a swe .

“We have spe t yea s aski g what age a child should get a sma tpho e. We thi k the e is a bette questio : what ca that child demo st ate that tells us they a e eady fo what the device actually gives them access to?” said Ki a Pe de gast, Fou de of Safe o Social.

“A sma tpho e is ot just a pho e. It is a came a, mic opho e, t acki g device, payme t tool, publishi g platfo m, AI assista t, a d a always-ope gateway to i fo matio a d people. Readi ess should the efo e be demo st ated, ot assumed because a bi thday has a ived.”

The p oject i cludes a Pho e o App Busi ess Case, SWOT a alysis, safety pla , p ivacy a d time pla , Pa e t P ese tatio Checklist, 15 questio s fo pa e ts to use du i g the p ese tatio , a d a Family Digital Access Ag eeme t that pa e t a d child sig togethe .

It is accompa ied by Safe o Social’s Sta t Small, Release Slowly f amewo k. Fo families who choose a basic/dumb o child e ‘s pho e, the p oject p ovides questio s to ask befo e buyi g, because ma y devices ma keted as simple still collect locatio data, sto e messages o compa y se ve s, o i clude b owse s a d app sto es. Fo families who al eady have a sma tpho e i the home, the f amewo k shows how to co figu e a iPho e o A d oid device with limited fu ctio ality, a d etu featu es o e at a time as the child demo st ates eadi ess.

If t ust is b oke , access ca step back athe tha disappea i g e ti ely.

“Whateve device a family chooses, the same questio s apply. Who sto es my child’s locatio ? Who ca ead thei messages? A d what is this device t ai i g them to check? A dumb pho e is ofte ot as dumb as it states; it is ot automatically safe, a d a sma tpho e is ot automatically u safe,” Pe de gast said. “Access follows eadi ess.”

Safe o Social suppo ts schools that choose pho e-f ee school days. The Sma tpho e Readi ess P oject is desig ed fo the home, whe e decisio s about device access a e made, a d it is desig ed to compleme t school pho e policies.

The i itiative eflects a b oade di ectio fo Safe o Social i the U ited States: movi g digital safety upst eam f om i cide t espo se towa d ea lie ide tificatio of behavio al isk, p actical i te ve tio , a d g eate visibility fo the adults espo sible fo child e .

A sepa ate 2025 atio al poll f om the C.S. Mott Child e ‘s Hospital fou d that 75% of US pa e ts ega ded both social media a d excessive sc ee /device use as majo p oblems fo child e a d tee s, while 66% ide tified i te et safety as a majo co ce . Natio al Poll o Child e ‘s Health

Will A stee, Global CEO of Safe o Social, said the Sma tpho e Readi ess P oject’s sig ifica ce exte ds beyo d the i dividual p oduct.

“This is exactly the p oblem we a e buildi g Safe o Social a d Ct l+Shft to solve. Families a d schools a e su ou ded by i dividual digital i cide ts, but u de eath them a e epeatable behavio al patte s. Ou job is to ide tify those patte s ea ly, tu mo e tha a decade of f o tli e k owledge i to p actical i tellige ce, a d give people somethi g they ca actually do with it.”

“The fi st-pho e co ve satio is o e example. We ca see the p essu e buildi g, whe e pa e ts a e st uggli g, a d what schools a e co f o ti g o ce those devices a ive. The oppo tu ity is to i te ve e ea lie . But lets suppo t Ame ica Pa e ts a d thei kids to collectively decide best way fo wa d.”

The US editio of The Sma tpho e Readi ess P oject has bee localized fo Ame ica families a d i cludes the complete digital guide a d p i table wo ksheet pack. Sepa ate editio s a e available fo Aust alia a d the U ited Ki gdom.

The Sma tpho e Readi ess P oject

The Sma tpho e Readi ess P oject is available at: https://www.safeo social.com/p oduct-page/the-sma tpho e- eadi ess-p oject

About Safe o Social I c.

Safe o Social, powe ed by Ct l+Shft has wo ked at the f o tli e of digital safety si ce 2013, buildi g mo e tha a decade of Ea ed I tellige ce™ f om the eal-wo ld expe ie ces of schools, educato s, families, a d commu ities. Fou ded by bestselli g autho a d digital safety expe t Ki a Pe de gast, that f o tli e k owledge ow powe s Ct l+Shft, a Behavio al Risk I tellige ce platfo m desig ed to ide tify eme gi g patte s of digital a d behavio al isk ea lie , docume t duty of ca e, a d help o ga izatio s act befo e co ce i g sig als become se ious ha m.

Th ough its US e tity, Safe o Social I c. wo ks with public a d p ivate schools to b i g togethe educatio , isk i tellige ce, a d gove a ce th ough o e co ected system, helpi g make tech ology a safe a d mo e positive pa t of school life.

Lea mo e at www.safeo social.com.

Media, Pa t e ship & I vesto I qui iesWill A steeSafe o Social I c.[email p otected]www.safeo social.com

SOURCE: Safe o Social