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Parental Control that works?

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by karma1 1 view

Closed to new repliesThis discussion is closed. It stays readable, but it takes no new replies.

I know the answer probably exists on the Net and is probably not to hard to find, but a friend asked and I just don't feel like looking into it. lol.

Is there anyway to have Parental Control in IE on Windows XP Home w/out using the built in Content Advisor? The content advisor is prety much useless as most sites do not utilize the rating system.

I know of Net Nanny or Cyber Nanny or whatever it's called, I'm just wondering if anyone has something else that would work. Thanks.

Alex.

15 replies

by b_pope

I know this isn't the answer you want but is what I tell anyone who asks me the same question.
***
To start with the Internet isn't a babysitter or a toy for your children, to be used by them unsupervised. If your child is using a PC that's connected to the Internet, you should be right there with them, not in the other room or out for the evening.

Any parent that would allow a child under the age of consent to have unsupervised access to the Internet is guilty of neglect & should be charged.
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The problem is the people who cry the loudest about porn & other adult or nasty stuff on the Internet are the same people who use the Internet as a babysitter for their kids. Then they try to force politicians into placing restrictions on the Internet's use & content. Now these neglectful parents are infringing on everyone else's rights.

The answer to your question is simple, there is no foolproof parental controls except responsible parenting.

by thechas

You listed 2 different commercial web filter programs:

Net Nanny and Cyber Patrol.

Both use lists of blocked web sites.

The problem with nearly ALL filtering solutions is the changing nature of the Internet.

New web sites with content you might wish to block pop up every day.

Other filters are so restrictive that legitimate scholastic research cannot be completed.

The "BEST" solution is to have the PC with Internet connectivity out in the open where everyone can see where the user is on the web.

Another option, is the trust approach.

Create a written contract between you and your children detailing allowable Internet usage.

If you cannot trust your family to use the Internet responsibly, what happens when they are away from home?

Another option in some areas is Christian ISPs.
What these providers do, is limit access to only allowed sites. Any new site needs to be checked out before it gets added to the allowed list.

Here are some web sites of interest:

http://www.cyberpatrol.com/

http://www.cybersitter.com/

http://www.2watch.com/

http://www.bluehighways.com/tifap/

http://www.internet-filters.net/

http://www.hedgebuilders.com/

Chas

by hal 9000

Alex,

The first answer is the only correct answer!

While there are programs available the older a child is the more likely they are to find ways around them or even worse enter chat rooms filled with nasty people who prey on children.

There is only one fool proof way of making sure that children don't get into things that they shouldn't be seeing and that is to supervise them constantly.

I've lost count of the number of times that children have run away from home to meet a weirdo that they have meet in a chat room and been abused by this adult posing as a child. While the programs that Chas has listed are a good start there is no substitute for being involved in the child's Surfing experience and never allowing them on-line unsupervised what may seem totally acceptable to a child will be immediately considered as unacceptable to an adult who is supervising their children.

It is the parents responsibility to keep their children safe and that includes Internet use as well as the other things that they teach their children. How many parents would allow their children to speak to total strangers but find this activity acceptable while on line?

Col

by willcomp

While I agree in principle that the best approach is parental involvement, it may not always be practical.

Here is a filter that I've seen in action. Difficult to defeat (it works in winsock layers) and effective. May be overly restrictive in some cases, but that is side to err on.

http://www.afafilter.com/criteria.asp

Dalton

by sgt_shultz

nope. nothing else works. they all work pretty muc the same, is my two cents: using a blacklist to filter out unsavory sites.
and that isn't really going to be satisfactory except in limited solutions.
that is why supervision, education, cultivated suspicion and all needed.
it might be easier to get a spy ware program that let's you examine kids' surfing habits and keep watch after the fact?

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