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Parental Internet Controls |
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Well,
it started. I now have a daughter who has a computer
in her room. Still no TV, just a computer…It all
started about two months ago when we decided to purchase
a new computer for ourselves and were subsequently faced
with the dilemma of what and where to put our old computer.
After a lot of discussion and pleading from our
eight year old, we decided to let her put the computer
in her room. She has been fascinated with computers
since the age of one and a half and regularly
corresponds via email with her cousins, aunts, and uncles.
Once we got the computer set up in her room
complete with wireless internet access, we had to come
to some decisions about what parental internet controls
to install. So I have spent the last two months
researching
what my options were for parental internet controls and
wanted to share what I have learned.
The first point I want to make is there are no fail safe
methods of protecting your children from every “undesirable”
on the web. All options have their shortcomings
and still require parental monitoring to ensure little
eyes are not seeing more than they should.
Secondly, as parents we have a lot of choices in how we
go about protecting our kids. Choices range from complete
blocking to only establishing household rules. Your
ultimate choice will probably most depend on the
age of your child and what you want as a parent. Lastly,
not only do we have to worry about what our kids see when
they “surf” the web, but we also have to worry about
instant messaging and chat rooms. It’s a lot
to take in, but here we go.
Options
for Parental Internet Controls
Internet Service Providers (ISP’s)
Many
ISP’s today offer parents a lot of choices for parental
internet controls. Most allow some type of blocking
and filtering of inappropriate websites and emails. AOL
by far has the best reputation for state of the art parental
controls, but many other ISP’s are beginning to step up
their efforts and also offer options for parents. To
help you
in this, I have included the
parental
control links
to some of the biggest ISP’s, so hopefully you can easily
check to see what your ISP has to offer.
Web
Browsers
Both
Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator have built in
but limited controls for parents to use. In
Internet
Explorer
parents can set limits by using their own criteria,
criteria established by the Recreational Software Advisory
Council (RSACi) and SafeSurf , or the rating system of
another organization they trust. It is important
to note that both RSACi and SafeSurf rely on website owners
to voluntarily (currently there are not laws requiring
them to do so) rate their site, something that many choose
not to
do (both good and bad sites), and since the web browsers
automatically block anything not rated it makes getting
around on the web without a lot of “blocks” very difficult.
Netscape
Navigator
also sets limits based on
the criteria established by RSACi and SafeSurf, but to
the best of my knowledge do not allow parents to set their
own criteria or use the criteria of a rating agency other
than the two mentioned.
Blocking/Monitoring/Filtering Software
By
installing blocking/monitoring/filtering software on your
computer you can control what your children see and do
on the internet as well as monitor what they are doing
when you aren’t around. Most software packages
today offer the capability to do all three functions as
well as offer
protections for instant messaging and chat rooms.
Blocking software allows the parents to block “bad” sites
from reaching their kids and many also allow parents to
designate “good” sites and only grant access to sites
on the “good” sites list. Software packages
with blocking
capabilities usually have a list of predetermined “bad”
sites and may charge a monthly service fee to get the
updated lists. If you go this route, be sure to pick a
package that also gives you the ability to add to or customize
the “bad” site list. There is also blocking software
that prevents children from sharing personal information
(address, phone number) with someone over the internet.
This can be helpful when your children start using
chat rooms to protect them from sharing personal information
with online predators.
Filtering software works off of a list of keywords (i.e.
sex) to block sites. Because it is very difficult
for even the best software programs to keep up with the
multitude of sites being added everyday, filtering works
as a backup to the blocking function to prevent any “bad”
sights sneaking through to the kids. The keywords
are pre-set in the
software and like the blocking option be sure to choose
a software package that allows parents to customize the
keyword list.
Monitoring and tracking software is a tool that allows
parents to keep track of everything the kids are doing
on line including reading emails, instant messages, seeing
which websites have been visited, and how long the kids
have been on-line. Some software packages even allow parents
to control at which times of day and for how long kids
can be on the computer. This can be helpful for
parents who work outside the home and whose kids are home
alone after school. It is important to note that
these
monitoring and tracking tools (if purchased in a stand
alone package) don’t prevent kids from visiting certain
sites, they just tell parents where they have been and
for how long.
If you are considering purchasing filtering or monitoring
software, then be sure to visit the
Internet
Filter Review
at
TopTenReviews.com
or the
Filtering
Software Review
at PC Magazine. Both offer a lot of insight into
how these software packages work and their recommendations
for the best purchase. Another good resource are the
Family
Tools
at
GetNetWise.org.
Kid
Search Engines
Also
available to parents are search engines designed specifically
for kids. The search engines only access “safe”
websites and materials. These search engines are
okay, but only until your kids learn how to type in a
new address in the address bar. My daughter and
I have personally used
Yahooligans
quite a bit for school research or for other activities,
but there are many others
available. Click
here
for a more comprehensive list. Another option is
to set the safety controls of other search engines to
filter out porn. These filters are not perfect and
some unacceptable sites can get past them. Click
here
if you would like to learn more about using the filters
of the major search engines.
Kid
Browsers
Kid
browsers are web browsers designed for children to use
in place of Internet Explorer or Netscape Navigator. They
are very kid friendly and filter out unacceptable sites.
A couple of good ones I have found are
Children’s Internet
and
KidRocket.org.
Children’s Internet charges $9.95 per
month whereas KidRocket though more limited is available
through a donation of your choice. Kid
browsers are geared more toward younger kids (ages 3 –
10) and older kids may find this type of browsers “babyish”.
Resources
for Parents
Here
is a list of some good resources for parents to help educate
them on internet safety and some of the dangers on the
web. Also, you should visit
CommonSenseMedia.
They are an independent organization that reviews and
rates websites, TV shows, video games, movies, books,
and songs for appropriateness for kids. They also
allow
parents and kids to provide reviews as well. It is a good
resource if you want to hear what other people have to
say about a website your child is visiting.
GetNetWise.org
WiredKids.org
Cyberangels.org
Our
Solution
After
all my research, we have decided that for now to just
set up a few rules and monitor her on-line activities
ourselves by reviewing the history in her browser address
bar and checking the emails she receives and sends. As
she gets older and her web surfing and internet activities
(instant messaging and chat rooms) more sophisticated,
we will have to consider more, but for now we think this
is enough. |
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