There's been quite a bit of press about the harmful effects of porn on kids, even if viewed by accident. My kids are at an age where they are starting to use the internet for homework and for fun. It's difficult to always be checking they are safe from the lewd things, let alone dangerous stuff like porn. What have people found to be an effective safeguard while making the internet still usable?
Internet Filter for Kids suggestions
skimp on 10/03/2016 - 22:23
Last edited 10/03/2016 - 22:26
Last edited 10/03/2016 - 22:26
Comments
OpenDNS comes to mind. Free and easy to set up…. but also easy to undo, provided you have the technical smarts to do so.
Parental controls that are too stiff can block useful websites. Also, they don't scale to protecting multiple devices from accessing to web. So even if you install it on the home PC…. they can get around it by using smartphone, tablet or iPod touch. Or they might just hit the internet cafe or use 3G dongle.
A quick google search 'how to access blocked websites' also yields tonnes of results on how to defeat filters. Not hard for a 14 year old kid or for anyone determined. The best way is to educate them rather than to keep them in the dark.
I'd suggest actively educating the child, using stronger controls when they're younger (from initial access up through age 12?), and phasing them out as they get to the age where they're going to be exposed to dangers and objectionable content in the physical world (e.g. 13+ year olds hang out at the mall without parental supervision and are perfectly capable of subverting filters simply by going to a friend's house).
+1 to openDNS however it is pretty easy to get around. I agree with scrimshaw, actually talk to your kids about this stuff instead of just restricting it. The fact of the matter is that they are going to become curious and start to look things up…
Unless they are under 12 and looking stuff up I wouldn't do anything. It shows them you trust them and think they are mature enough to use the internet without you looking over the shoulder 24/7
There's no better Internet filter than parental supervision :)