Internet Security

[Downward]

Whats the best way to stop the kids straying from the Cbeebies Website ??

I have set them up their own account but can't control the internet !

 

[Carwash]

Education. Supervision.

On OS X, you can set up arbitrarily specific restrictions under System Preferences -> Parental Controls.

 

[summerdays]

Its a downward spiral from there even iPlayer seems fine until you realise they suddenly have access to programs you don't want them to see.

 

[Downward]

websense maybe ?

 

[JamesAC]

Education. Supervision.

On OS X, you can set up arbitrarily specific restrictions under System Preferences -> Parental Controls.

+1. Don't let them have their own web access from their own pcs in their own rooms. Limit access to a pc that's in your living room. You don't have to peer over their shoulders, but they know that you know.

There are a number of products available to stop your children emailing or messaging their phone numbers, addresses and other personal data; you can also restrict (in a not very effective way) the websites they can visit.

It does make me cross that people who use FaceBook very often use language that really isn't suited to a family orientated facility. I wouldn't have wanted my children, when young, to read some of the stuff FB "friends" post!

 

[Downward]

+1. Don't let them have their own web access from their own pcs in their own rooms. Limit access to a pc that's in your living room. You don't have to peer over their shoulders, but they know that you know.

There are a number of products available to stop your children emailing or messaging their phone numbers, addresses and other personal data; you can also restrict (in a not very effective way) the websites they can visit.

It does make me cross that people who use FaceBook very often use language that really isn't suited to a family orientated facility. I wouldn't have wanted my children, when young, to read some of the stuff FB "friends" post!

He is a bit young for Facebook yet but I'm gonna look into some blocking software.

 

[summerdays]

The problem with only allowing access to the internet via the one viewable by the family is that now they are older they need to and like to hog the computer (multiple children). Its the way that generation communicate - even on Christmas Day mine were contacting friends to see what presents they got. By the time they need to do homework as well......

We have put in parental controls - drives them mad - Dad can you OK this site sort of comments, and you can't access the internet upstairs after a certain time at night either.

But then mine are probably older than the ones you are talking about.

As for Facebook - my eldest was helping me this morning with my account - bad job when they know more about it than I do.

 

[HJ]

There is a review of parental control software here and some advice on how to use it here, hope that helps.

 

[Crankarm]

I know you can get software that monitors how computers are being used say a master computer tracks others in a mini network and records everything they do. A lot of work places use them. They have an icon in the lower right task bar and it is made clear to employees that they should not use any site that they would not feel fully comfortable in people knowing they visited plus porn, chat, Ebay are banned on their systems. Of course you'd need a master computer so you could monitor the Downwardettes and take over their computer remotely if you felt stuff they were viewing was unsuitable or it would automatically be blocked.

 

[shippers]

Depends on the age of your munchkins. If you have 7 yr olds, then supervision is the way to go as they'll only ever stumble across things. A few years onlder, net nanny type software will do the trick, then with a determined teenager you're back to supervision as they'll find proxy websites to get round the software.

I teach, and we get the 14 year olds to find out how to get round the blocks on facebook. "vtunnel" works well...

 

[summerdays]

I had to get Mr Summerdays to extract a You Tube video that I wanted to use for work purposes ... later my kids told me that there are ways around the You Tube ban and they could get on there from their school computers. That's the problem - they are far more advanced in this technology than I am.

 

[2Loose]

Kids normally see restrictions as a challenge, especially when they are not supervised. It can sometimes be a wonderful learning experience for them though.

On the filtering note, see
http://gizmodo.com/293419/australian-84-million-porn-filter-thwarted-by-16+year+old for a great example.