Unlock codes, your grown-up PIN and leaving Kid Mode

Each kid unlocks Kid Mode with their own code: 3 private pictures in the Little view, or a 4-digit PIN in the Big kid view. They pick it the first time Kid Mode opens. You use your own 6-digit grown-up PIN to leave Kid Mode on a device. Kids never see it.

Steps

1. To leave Kid Mode on a device, choose Grown-ups at the top of Kid Mode.
2. Type your 6-digit grown-up PIN and choose OK.
3. On a paired tablet, choose Switch to another kid or Unpair this tablet. On a device where you chose Open Kid Mode on this device, Kid Mode turns off and you choose Sign in to get back to your account.
4. If your kid forgot their code, open their row menu on the Family tab (or the Devices tab on their page) and choose Reset unlock, then Reset.
5. To change or reset your own PIN, open the Kid Mode PIN menu on the Family tab and choose Change your PIN or Forgot your PIN?.

How it works

• Kid codes: the first time, your kid picks a code and enters it twice. If they forget it, Reset unlock makes them pick a new one next time. It also clears a lock from too many wrong tries.
• Too many tries: after 5 wrong tries in a row, Kid Mode locks for 15 minutes and asks your kid to get a grown-up. After 10, it stays locked until you reset the unlock.
• Grown-ups: open without the code: on the unlock screen, a grown-up can open a kid's jars once with the grown-up PIN, without the kid's code.
• Your PIN: in Settings, after 5 wrong tries it locks for 15 minutes; after 10, for 24 hours. Wrong PINs typed on a kid's device to leave Kid Mode lock only that device (15 minutes, then an hour), never your PIN in Settings. Forgot your PIN? asks for your two-step sign-in code if you use one, or else your Beyond Payday password (if you sign in with Google or Apple, sign out and back in first, then reset it within 10 minutes). A new PIN works on every device, and kids' codes don't change.
• Lock and idle: Lock at the top sends Kid Mode back to Who's using?. After 30 minutes with no taps, it goes back on its own.

Good to know

• Codes and PINs are stored scrambled, never as plain text.
• Removing a device on the Devices tab stops it opening Kid Mode right away.
• Open Kid Mode on this device signs you out of Beyond Payday on that device while your kid uses it, so a kid never holds your login. While Kid Mode is on, that browser can't sign in until a grown-up leaves Kid Mode with the PIN.
• Lock, leaving Kid Mode and Reset unlock end your kid's session on the server too, not just on the screen.

FAQ

My kid forgot their code. What now? Choose Reset unlock on their row menu or Devices tab. They pick a new code the next time Kid Mode opens. A grown-up can also open their jars once without it.

Kid Mode says too many tries. How long is the lock? After 5 wrong tries, it waits 15 minutes. After 10, it stays locked until you choose Reset unlock.

I forgot my grown-up PIN. How do I reset it? On the Family tab, open the Kid Mode PIN menu and choose Forgot your PIN. If you use two-step sign-in, you confirm that first; otherwise you type your Beyond Payday password (or sign in again in the last 10 minutes if you use Google or Apple).

Why do I have to sign in again after Kid Mode on my phone? Open Kid Mode on this device signs you out there, so a kid never holds your login. Leaving Kid Mode asks you to sign back in.