One in five children is sexually solicited over the Internet, according to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children. Aside from that frightening statistic, reading stories about innocent young children accidentally viewing unmentionable images simply because they misspelled an URL is reason enough to be sure you have controls in place.
I love the internet. As a young’un, I would dream about getting locked in a library overnight. Now, with all that information and more at our fingertips, I’m a confirmed information junkie that has definite controls in place (my husband) to maintain the biblical admonition “all things in moderation”. Since research, religion, homeschooling and business are my weaknesses, I find I don’t accidentally stumble upon much that I wouldn’t want my children to see. Maybe a spam email eeks through once or twice a month, but they are easy to spot even before opening.
However, with social networking being a major part of most teen’s lives, there are so many different avenues to watch over that it can get a little mind boggling.
First, Start With The Basics:
Your Computer’s Internet Options/Content
In the past, I’ve found that the parental controls didn’t do much except cause great frustration. It seemed that over-blocking or not blocking at all made the effort futile. I’ve not changed my computer’s controls in awhile, but if you are worried, it’s worth checking out. It is a free option. However, the Content Advisor on Windows XP and 7 is something you may want to go over and change the settings to your choosing.
Google’s Safe Search-A Must Do
Since I use Google exclusively for search, along with over 90% of online search, we’ll only cover them. If you don’t know how to set your search preferences, it’s very simple and will only take a minute. Go to your iGoogle page (or set one up if you don’t have one yet) and at the top right click on ‘Settings’ and then ‘Search settings’. Then, on ‘Safe Search Filtering‘, I use ‘Strict Filtering’. ” Be sure to save preferences before you leave the page. I have found this works very well for me, rarely encountering a site that is remotely questionable.
It used to be enough that setting the family computer in a central location and checking the history (Control+Shift+H) was enough. It’s obviously gone way beyond that, which is why there are so many child safety filtering services out there now. But how do you choose?
Most internet security suites offer parental controls, but they are reported to never be as fully functional and effective as stand alone programs. Webroot is one of the few that has competitive parental control filters included that can rival any on the list below.
If you share a computer with your children, then you want a program that is user-specific. Creating a user account for each family member works as long as you remember to log out every time. If you are looking at an older program, watch out for exclusively category-specific programs. Offenders have learned how to easily circumvent most of these. Invest in the most up-to-date program you can afford. Free updates would be a big plus in your decision making.
The top programs that rank in the best reviews are:
Safe Eyes This is the one that Dave Ramsey recommends, and is in the top 10 3 of every review site I checked. One license can be used on 3 computers. Looks good. Price: $49.99
Net Nanny - If you were sure about Safe Eyes, then I’ll make it more difficult to decide. Net Nanny makes #1 on just about every review list online. They seem to have figured out all the ways kids can circumvent the controls, and ways naughty sites can trick the filters-making little room for errors or hacking. Top choice of many. Price: $39.99 (only one computer, $59.99/3)
Cybersitter – The least expensive if you only have one computer ($24.99-charges increase with number of computers you own), it’s highly effective, but a little complicated when used with multiple browsers. Price: starts at $24.99
Onlinefamily.Norton.com – Now I’m really going to complicate your decision-or possibly make it a no-brainer. If you have used Norton’s AntiVirus’s parental controls and were not impressed, this is a horse of a different color. Full featured and rated highly with the critics, it’s difficult to fool or poke holes in this web based program. Norton originally said they were going to charge $60/year for their new program, but as of September, 2010, it’s still free. So, the price is right, unfortunately that might not last forever. Price: Free
K-9 Web Protection - This is a free program that has returned some mixed reviews. Although WordPress has debunked the “you get what you pay for” myth, protecting kids online is a worthy cause. It’s definitely worth a try!
Order a free Online Safety Education Kit
One of the best informational and educational websites geared to engage kids to help them learn to protect themselves is NetSmartz. On the front, or home page, you will see where you can order this kit or click here for the online form. You can also call 1-800-THE-LOST or write:
NetSmartz Workshop
Charles B. Wang International Children’s Building
699 Prince Street
Alexandria, Virginia 22314-3175
Get Net Wise is another good website devoted to educating kids and parents on safe internet usage.
Become a Teen Angel
Is your teen web-safety-savvy? Maybe they would consider becoming a Teen Angel! Read more about what these TeenAngels are doing to help others stay safe.
Anyone know of other tools that are worthwhile in keeping kids safe online? It helps us all to share… Thanks!
Thanks for the resources.
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