What is Parental Control Software ?

Parental control software can be defined as a special web blocking software that has the ability to filter programs on the net and reject the sites that are inappropriate for children. This is also known as Internet blocking software and Blocking software.

A year back, a survey was conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life project in Washington D.C. and almost 1,100 parents and teenagers were consulted. The result showed that this web blocking device is becoming increasingly popular as parents are keen to use filters that can restrict their children from viewing sites with questionable content. The survey revealed that nearly 54% of American parents have installed parental control software in their homes in the year 2004/2005. This accounts to almost 12 million American households. In the year 2000 there were only 41% (or 7 million) families who had this software installed at home. It is amazing how much the demand grew in the last 4 to 5 years. The data also revealed that 72% parents were concerned that their children were spending too much time on the internet instead of doing other worthwhile stuff; about 62% felt that their kids were reading unsuitable matter online while 58% felt that their children were entering chat rooms and meeting strangers.

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It is the task of every parent to protect their children from the harmful contents of the internet. Though there is no “absolute fool proof” solution to this problem, parental software provides a considerable amount of support in achieving this. It allows the kids to enjoy the vast plethora of knowledge that can be attained with one push of the button and simultaneously restricting them from the detrimental effects of the chats rooms and other objectionable sites. Installation of parental control software has a lot of benefits. A few include • Less worry when the child is browsing the internet. • Gather information on how the net was accessed and in turn restrict its use if necessary. • Shield personal information or data stored in the computer • Protect the child from being exploited by online predators. • Ensure that the child is getting the maximum possible benefits from the usage.
A few companies that offer parental control software are • iProtectYou is an sophisticated Internet filtering and monitoring program that is essential for the parents who are constantly worried about the harmful effects of the internet on their children. This software allows a complete control on the child’s usage of the net hence preventing him from being exposed to the negativities of the web world. • CyberSieve provides an extra feature-along with the basic features it also provides the additional benefit of supervising the child’s use not only at home but also at work or even on vacation. • Chronager is a parental control software that gives the parent an absolute control of the computer handling – from the choosing the time when it can be used for studies and when it can be used for entertainment. Its benefits include • Restricting the time for computer use. • Setting the time when the child can use CD/DVD ROM and removable discs. • Restraining internet use. • Scheduling times when the child can use the computer for various activities (for e.g. for playing, watching movies, messaging). • Obtaining an all-inclusive record about the usage of the internet and other programs.
However, all the softwares mentioned above are not perfect. It has been noted that in most of the cases, these internet blocking filters over do or under do their jobs. Apart from these there are some parental control softwares that are offered by the MSN and AOL services. Consumer Reports and WebUser.com are amongst the few who provide the consumers comprehensive information about the various software filtering programs. One such research shows that the software IProtectYou lags behind its rivals as it often ends up in blocking genuine websites. IProtectYou works by closing down the browser or any chat site when any offensive word comes up. Some users consider this method as very harsh. Parental control software with ISP Some internet filtering softwares are provided by the services like MSN, AOL and also Windows XP

• AOL AOL urges the elders to create separate screen names for each minor in the family. This screen name also acts as a personal e-mail account of the child. The protection software consists of four control levels and the parent can select from them based on the age and maturity level of each child. AOL has recently introduced a new Safety and Security Centre that provides parental controls along with identity protection and virus protection. Of course, the parental control software provided by AOL is not as high tech as its standalone counterpart even though the parents can monitor the time of internet activity and generate reports on the net usage. However, AOL does not have the capacity to filter instant messaging and to restrict children; parents need to completely do away with it. Earlier AOL allowed parental controls only for contents that were accessed through the AOL browser; but the latest version filters browses made through Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.

• MSN This ISP also offers a few parental controls. Unlike AOL, MSN obstructs the inappropriate HTML images rather than the whole message. This also has an exclusive feature - it allows the parents to give permission through a checkbox or responding through e-mails. This essentially means that the minor can mail the elder asking for permission to access a particular blocked site. MSN does not filter e-mails or chats, but the parents can create a separate setting for each user.

• Windows XP Windows XP also provides some parental controls though they are much less refined than AOL and MSN. It allows the parents to restrict the web sites that are rated by the Internet Content Rating Association (ICRA) – these rated sites have special tags to control access. However, not all websites have a ICRA rating and hence the parents have to visit individual sites and restrict their usage if the content is objectionable.

Experts have advised that the following points must be considered while procuring a parental control software for the family
• It is necessary to look for user-selectable access levels and a list of the blocked websites. This will help the parents to know about the objectionable sites and at the same time adjust the level of restriction. Parents should also look for different filtering levels that can be accessed by many users. Young children need more filtering compared to the older ones. Most of the internet filters available in today’s market permit installation only in one system. However, the only exception is SafeEyes that lets the users to install it in as many as three computers.
• One should choose software that can filter the various chat sites and instant messaging. Younger kids being vulnerable are targeted through these instant messaging and chat sites duping them to reveal their phone numbers and other personal details. The best and the most advanced Internet filters available in the market can completely block the instant messaging and also sort chat conversations. Few can even record chat conversations for future reviewing.
• Finally it is important to choose a filter that only blocks the unwanted sites but is also easy to maintain and affordable.

Article Contributed By: Sukanaya Banerjee


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