Blocking iPhone Hotspots
I use Apple’s Screen Time feature to control my son’s iPhone usage. Unfortunately, Apple does not provide a built-in way to block iPhone hotspots. My son would use his hotspot to allow internet access to his computer once I blocked the Wi-Fi to it.
In a perfect world, Apple would also allow you to block the hotspot as well. One way I have been able to block it is through the mobile/cell carrier app. Note that not all mobile phone companies support this feature.
In Australia, Optus has the option to pause individual SIM cards (if you have multiple on one plan). You set how long you want to pause the data for, up to 24 hours. When you set how long to pause the data for, it will tell you what time it will turn back on. Normally, once my son gets home from school, I pause the data until just before it’s time to go to school the next day. The phone still works on the home Wi-Fi, but the phone can no longer be used as a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Another mobile phone company that supports this through their app in Australia is Everyday Mobile from Woolworths. In the app, under Service Options –> Mobile –> Parental Control, you have the option to enable or disable data, or you can also schedule the data to turn on and off. You would need to be careful to make sure you turn the data back on once the phone is no longer on Wi-Fi, or the phone will not be able to access the internet. Phone calls would still work, so if you did forget, then I am sure you will be receiving a call.
You would need to check which mobile phone companies in your country have these features, but it is a great feature to control the screen time of a sneaky teenager.
If you have multiple Optus sims on the one account, select Manage devices to select which sim is affected by the paused data
With Everyday Mobile you can either turn on or off the mobile data or schedule it to turn on or off
