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Free Parental Control Software
Every parent wants their kids to be safe. Parental control software can help you protect them from visiting inappropriate sites or protect them from online predators. The software you choose depends largely on the age of the child and, to a lesser extent, the online activities of the child.
Content Advisor in Internet Explorer
You can use the Content Advisor filter built in to Internet Explorer to prevent access to
many websites. From within Internet Explorer, click on Tools->Internet Options, then click on the Content tab, then click on Enable.
The default content filter in Internet Explorer is no longer functional and you need to install a new one. Two free services are:
Just follow the instructions to download and install the .rat ratings file. Once these files are installed, you can select the content service on the General tab and control the filters on the Ratings tab in the Content Adviser control panel. Help on Content Advisor is available from Microsoft.
Parental Control for Young Children
Young children are the easiest to protect with filtering software because there are relatively few websites that are appropriate for them. Consider these for young children:
Parental Control for Grade School Kids
Grade school aged children need less restrictive access to website to be able to complete homework assignments. Some free parental filters include:
 KidZui Launching March 19, this is a browser skin that creates a fun environment for kids to surf a white list of web sites. The target age bracket is 3 to 12 years old. Initially, it looks like there will be a free trial, then a subscription after the trial.- We Blocker - UPDATED November 2006! Uses a black list of sites with automatic updates. You can create your own white list or black list of sites or keywords. Allows multiple user profiles each with different filtering options. Also logs all sites visited. If you try this new version, let us know your thoughts!
- Naomi - Uses heuristics rather than a black list.
- NoWorrys - Very basic white list. Denies access to anything else.
- B Gone - Filters sites based on a blacklist of words in the page title.
- SurfPass - Uses a blacklist and filters. Also lets you set time limits. US Netizen Recommended
- Family Safety from Windows Live OneCare (2008) - Final version November 2007. Finally a parental filter from Microsoft.
Parental Control for Adolescents and Teenagers
Older kids may attempt to circumvent any filter you install. They may do this as a challenge just to see if they can. For this age group, commercial software with hardened defenses is necessary. We don't know of a free filter that can't be disabled by a clever teenager. Expect to pay $20 to $50 for this type of parental control software.
- Safekeeper Filters websites using a blacklist and keywords. Keyword filters are customizable per child including whitelists to allow specific websites. Filter chat (ICQ, AIM, Yahoo! and MSN) or allow it and record chat sessions for later review. Blocks MySpace entirely. Remote access to logs - check on your child's Internet activity from work! Includes a scheduler to limit hours of access that's customizable for each child. License covers three computers. Works on Vista and older Windows versions. This is a well-rounded program that should work well for most kids. (not free) US Netizen Recommended
- IamBigBrother Not a filter, so your kids won't know you're monitoring them. Records all passwords, Yahoo! mail, Hotmail, MySpace, chat, instant messages, screenshots, keystrokes and more. UPDATE: Great new feature allows you to view your child's surfing history remotely. Log in from your office computer to see what your kids did last night. This software keeps getting better! (not free) US Netizen Recommended
- IProtect You Filters websites or chat. Records surfing history. Restrict access using a schedule. (not free)
- NetNanny Filters websites or chat. Remote access to surfing history. Customizable for each child. Limit Internet access using a schedule. License is for a single computer. UPDATE: NetNanny was acquired by ContentWatch in February 2007 and has incorporated their dynamic content filtering into NetNanny. Get version 5.6 for the new dynamic filtering. Version 5.0 is the older software. (not free)
- CyberSitter
 Award winning filtering software. Excellent filter for websites. Good for pre-teens. (not free; note that the price is better from Amazon.com)
- Netintelligence Parental Control All-in-one software includes a content filter, scheduler and keystroke recorder. Filter can be customized for each child to filter objectionable sites or provide a safe zone of white listed sites. Remote access to view your child's Internet and chat history. BONUS: includes antivirus and antispyware software. Unique combination! Can be used on up to three computers. (not free)
- Cyber Patrol (not free)
- ComputerTime Not a filter. Simply restricts Internet access based on a schedule or time limits. As a parent, you allocate a number of hours per day or week each child is allowed on the Internet and ComputerTime does the rest. Bonus time can be given as a reward. (not free)
- BeNetSafe Focuses on MySpace, FaceBook and other social networking websites. BeNetSafe is unique in that it doesn't require any software to be installed and can't be bypassed or disabled. Your child's activities on social networking sites are monitored regardless of how they access the Internet - even from a friend's computer or even through proxies. You provide a list of e-mail addresses your child uses and BeNetSafe monitors all social networking sites for member activity using these addresses. This is a very different approach and can be used in conjunction with other monitoring methods. (not free)
- NetMop Blacklist filter. Blocks access to pornography and hate/drugs/illegal activity sites. Works with any ISP and browser, but limited to Windows. Uses FilterPak/S4F that's automatically updated. One license for up to three computers. Vista compatible. (not free)
- X3Watch Not a filter. Monitors Internet activity and records when a potentially objectionable site is visited. You periodically recieve an e-mail with the list of questionable sites visited along with the dates and times. Windows (up to Vista) and Mac versions. (free) The paid version adds more logging details and MySpace monitoring and the ability to track different users.
Specialty Filters/Programs
- File Sharing Sentinel - Blocks P2P file sharing programs such as Kazaa
- Reveal - Not a filter. Use this to search your child's computer for potentially adult or objectionable material. You can then view the files and judge for yourself if anything is inappropriate.
Useful Websites for Kids
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