Content Blocking Software Features Explained.

Content blocking software can be the easiest and least expensive form of family Internet control. A copy needs to be installed on each child's computer and does not affect the other computers in your home. Averaging $40-$50 per computer, it is well worth the expense if the software knowing your children do not have access to most of the offensive material on the Internet.

There are MANY products available for family Internet control; each with their own unique feature set. I have broken the main features down so you can better understand both your family's needs and the features of the content blocking software. The next page will look at some of the software available along with my personal recommendations.

 Everyone's software works with Windows 95/98/ME but not all of them work with Windows 2000. Fewer still work with Windows XP. If you run Win2k or especially XP, be sure to check for compatibility AND check their SUPPORT area for XP issues. Mac users have even fewer choices.

Can your child easily bypass the software? This is one of the more difficult questions to answer without installing the software. Luckily, most of the content filtering software companies provide some kind of trial download. Windows 95/98/ME are particularly difficult to harden because the OS lets the current user end just about any task by pressing 'control alt delete'. In any Windows OS, press 'ctrl-alt-delete' to bring up the task manager and try and find the filtering software. If you can end the task, so can your children!

Web blocking is handled two different ways, first by "URL List blocking" and the other by editable "content string blocking".

The company that manufacturers the software publishes a list of sites that are blocked with the software. This list is often broken down into categories that can be chosen by the parent. Updates to this list may be free or may be provided as a subscription. It is very important that this list is updated regularly because the Internet is constantly changing. Some software lets parents add to the list of blocked sites.

This blocks individual words and phrases from appearing on the screen or it will block the offending document completely. This is a cool feature but it can often block more than you need it to. For instance, it might block a web page about the US Vice President; Dick Cheney because these filters are not context sensitive.

Do your kids use instant messengers? Most likely they do. These features give you control over IM products like ICQ Chat, AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo Chat, MSN Messenger, etc. Some products block completely, others only block certain words.

When content is blocked from your children, what happens? A good content blocker will log the offending action for a parents possible review later. CyberSitter will actually Email parents the logs!

Some software allows parents to block off times that the computer will allow Internet access. This is a great way of making sure the kids are not IM'ing past their bed times or even when you are away at work.

If you have multiple children that share a single computer, multiple accounts features might be important. This feature would allow different restrictions for each of your children. This is especially important if their ages differ greatly.

This allows a parent the ability to enter in a list of strings that the your kids CAN NOT enter on a web page or instant messenger session. For instance, you could block your phone number and address so your children could never reveal these things. Credit card numbers are of course good to block too!

Now lets look at some specific software

 

Content Blocking Software Features Explained.