Many parents probably wish they could go through their children’s phones – that is, if they don’t already. One set of parents decided to prank their three adult children by telling them they had to go through their phones and filmed how they reacted.
Three “adult” sisters were asked to hand over their phones to their mother and father.
Gaby Ferr posted a video filmed by her parents in which she asks Gaby and her two sisters to give them their phones so they can search them.
First up was Emily, the eldest child.
“Emily, I need your phone,” her father said.
“For what?” she asked.
“We’ll get through this,” her mother interjected.
“How?” Emily asked, completely confused.
“Through your phone,” they replied.
Despite her reservations, Emily handed over her phone without further complaint. “What’s wrong?” she asked her parents, who calmly told her, “Don’t worry.”
Next, the parents turned to their middle child, Gaby, who was apparently the owner of the TikTok account. She was nowhere near as cooperative as her older sister.
“Gaby, I need your phone,” her father said.
“Um, why?” she asked, visibly disturbed.
“I have to go through this,” he replied.
“No,” she said firmly.
“Gaby, sorry, we just want to check your phone,” her mother interjected.
She had a quick retort: “Excuse me, I pay for this every month to avoid this.”
“What are you hiding?” her father asked, to which she replied, “Dad, I hide a lot of things. I promise you, this will be a mistake.”
Her mother then laughed heartily and explained the prank to her, calling it a “social experiment.” “All you had to do was give us your phone,” she said. “We didn’t even want to check it.”
Even though Gaby knew it was all just a joke, she refused to give in. “And you should have just left,” she said.
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Finally, they checked in on their youngest child. Her name was not clear on the video, but it sounded like Pamela.
“Where is your phone?” her father asked her.
She pulled it out of her pocket and held it up, confused. “Right here,” she said.
“Okay,” he said. “I need it.”
“Why?” she asked, confused, to which he replied, “I have to go through this.”
When Pamela asked why her father had to search her phone, he told her, “Because I’m your father.”
Pamela agreed to unlock the phone, but insisted on holding it in her own hand.
At this point, the girls’ parents seemed to reveal that they were, in fact, still paying for their youngest child’s phone.
“Give it to me,” her father demanded.
“Is it your phone?” she countered.
“It’s not my phone, but I pay for it,” he said.
Even if these parents were just playing a prank on their adult children, many parents actually monitor their children’s phone usage.
While this mom and dad were just filming their daughters for a prank, it turns out that many parents actually do check their kids’ phones, internet usage, etc.
The Pew Research Center reported that “61% of parents say they have checked what websites their teen has visited, while 60% said they check their teen’s social media profiles.”
In addition, “nearly half (48%) of parents say they have reviewed phone records or messages on their child’s cell phone.”
These parents were just having fun with their kids, but many parents take this seriously. Keeping an eye on their kids’ online habits and cell phone usage is a pretty normal thing.
Parents have a need to protect their children, and for many, that includes monitoring their use of technology. These parents may not appreciate this prank, but what this mom and dad did was just for fun. There’s nothing wrong with that.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer for YourTango who covers entertainment, news and human issues.
