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Note: As of November,
2009, I have retired. I am leaving the website in place for now, as it
contains much useful information, and it took countless hours to collect and
assemble all of this.
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Parental ControlThis is a difficult, but important topic. Because of the complexities involved, I can't recommend any one solution. Information is provided here to assist parents in learning about the protection of children using the internet, but this should not be construed as a definitive reference.
One of the best, but least appreciated, approaches to protecting your children, is education--- both yours and theirs. Some parents, for example, spend time and effort blocking adult Web sites, but don't realize that non-adult sites like MySpace, or applications like instant messaging, can be sources of both inappropriate content and exposure to online predators. It's important for you to know where the risks are. And it's a good idea to have occasional, frank conversations with your teen about the risks and dangers out there. After all, you can lock down your home PC, but most kids have access to other PCs as well, at the library, school and in the homes of friends. Making your kids generally self- resistant to the lure of online evils is often a better approach, in the long run, than trying to shield them from all those evils in all their forms on all their sites.
There are two general alternatives to simply giving teens full, uncensored
and unmonitored access to the Internet: 1) blocking content; and 2) monitoring
content.
I would encourage parents to research this issue to make an informed choice. Be aware that various products work in different ways, and some provide more than just parental control.
http://www.google.com/search?q=child+safety+internet Internet Filter Review 2007 (Lists some popular products) Net Family News - kid tech news for parents PC Magazine Article - Do You Know Where Your Kids Are Clicking? WiredSafety - the world's largest Internet safety and help group
These products received the PC Magazine Editor's Choice award: |