New Delhi, Jan 18 (Herald Sun) : The controversial “Ignore No More”, which promises to “helps parents get control back over their child’s phone”, will be fully available on iPhones from March after launching for Android phones last year.

Parents simply install the app on their phone and their child’s phone, tap their kid’s name and enter a four-digit code to lock their device.

When their phone is locked, kids can’t “text, surf the internet, play games or look at Facebook”, the app’s creator, tough Texan mum Sharon Standifird, said.

“What they can do is call the parent back to get the password to unlock their phone,” she said.

The 47-year-old dreamt up the app after getting no response from her two kids to several calls and texts asking them to let the dog out one day.

“I was so frustrated with this recurring event,” she said.

Ms Standifird had “zero experience” in the field. She had served in the army for more than 10 years, and worked as a teacher before becoming a technology trailblazer.

“It’s is not about punishing the child — it’s a tool to try and correct a behaviour,” Ms Standifird said.

Ms Standifird said parents usually bought and paid the bills for their children’s phones, and therefore had a right to control them.

Parents have developed further uses for the app, such as locking their child’s phones after bed time, while they were doing homework, and during school.