Keeping kids safe online a tough job for parents
Dec. 16, 2001
By JIM BROOKS
For more than five years, I've written columns about the Internet,
the good and the bad.
Early on, newspaper reports and TV broadcasts frequently carried
stories that showed just how "new" we were to the Internet:
there were Internet-related abductions and kidnappings, as well as
scams and other crimes. Any crime with a connection to the Internet
was news, no matter how small.
While users have become savvier, so have the crooks.
Something I don't discuss much in my columns is the seedier side of
the Internet. This includes Web sites with content inappropriate for
children, of which there are many.
If you're planning on a new computer for your family, children or
grandchildren, you probably have already wondered what steps you can
take to protect your kids or grandchildren from the trash that's
available online.
There are a number of Internet providers who offer filtered access.
These providers filter out as much of the trash as possible, making
it unavailable to anyone trying to find it using their service for
Internet access.
How well their system works depends on how closely their view of
objectionable content matches yours. Finding one with a local dial-up
telephone number in your area may also be a problem. In my rural
area, I had a difficult time finding a filtered Internet service that
was a local call.
My local cable company offers both filtered and unfiltered Internet
access. It uses Bess, a proxy server system, to filter the Internet.
And while parents can enable and disable Bess as desired, there still
may be differences in a parent's view of objectionable content and
the filtering company's view.
There are a number of software packages that can be a big help to parents.
The product names include NetNanny, CYBERsitter, Surf Patrol,
Internet Guard Dog and others.
Each product essentially makes use of its own database of known sites
the software company has determined are inappropriate for children.
Each software package has other features that can help parents know
what their children are doing online.
Unfortunately, in tests by CNet and Consumer Reports, both found that
the software programs missed a large number of objectionable Web sites.
CNet's review in June 2001 found that the best program only blocked
access to 50 percent of the test sites with objectionable content,
while it blocked a number of Web sites that had kid-safe content.
Consumer Reports found in its tests of blocking software that two of
the top software programs blocked only one-fifth of the 53
objectionable Web sites it assembled for its tests.
While there may be differences of opinion on what is and is not
objectionable content for your children, the top blocking programs
also give parents tools that can help them know what their kids are
doing online.
Cyber Patrol allows parents to control when children can go online.
It also has a feature called ChatGARD, which prevents chatting
children from divulging personal information to others. It also
allows parents to block or unblock sites that deal with sex education.
CYBERsitter keeps a log of user violations and also offers control of
when users can go online.
CNet gave its top rating to Net Nanny in its review of blocking
software earlier this year. Net Nanny offers a wide array of
controls, giving parents the ability to provide different access
levels to different users. Parents can determine access privileges to
Web sites, newsgroups and chat rooms.
Consumer Reports gave high marks to America Online's parental
controls. In its tests, the "Young Teen" rating -- for ages
13-15 -- blocked more objectionable Web sites than any of the
blocking software programs.
Clearly, no software program is going to be a complete solution --
which is exactly what Jerry Lear, one of the owners of Bardstown
Internet Service, a local Internet provider, told me recently.
Lear said in his view, the best way to keep children from accessing
objectionable content is to keep the computer in a public area -- the
TV room, den, kitchen or other room in the home.
"Keep your computer in a public place in the home, that's the
best solution," Lear said.
Lear said that he doesn't believe that as an Internet provider, he or
his business should be responsible for filtering the Internet.
The responsibility of deciding what is objectionable or acceptable a
child lies with his or her parents, not their Internet provider, Lear said.
While I did not test each software package for this column, I've
tried them in the past and found each a fairly effective tool. The
real question is how well parents use the software programs.
None of the programs listed here are a
"install-it-and-forget-it" program. Each requires periodic
updates of its database of banned Web sites, though parents can add
additional banned Web sites when necessary.
But blocking software isn't a complete solution. As Lear, CNet and
Consumer Reports all pointed out. Ultimately, it boils down to
parental supervision.
If you want to know what your teen is doing online, keep the computer
in a public area, and ask lots of questions. The blocking software
can help parents control access and monitor what's going on.
But even used as tools, the blocking programs aren't bulletproof.
Technically savvy kids today can find ways to disable or work around
the software; there are Web sites devoted to doing so.
Turning your kids loose on the Internet is similar to letting them go
to Los Angeles without adult supervision. There are a lot of great
places to go, but every community has its bad areas, and the Internet
has plenty of places your kids don't need to visit.
The SafeKids.com Web site has tips for keeping kids safe on the
Internet, and I recommend parents share their eight Kids' Rules for
Online Safety with their children.
The rules are common sense stuff, but it is an opportunity to talk
with your children about the Internet and their safety when using it.
SafeKids.com also has tips for parents -- it is especially useful for
parents or grandparents who want to learn more about potential
hazards online.
For more information on protecting kids online, visit www.getnetwise.org and www.safekids.com.
GOOD ADVICE. In a previous column I mentioned a screensaver
that was available at a Web site in my hometown. Jerry Lear, one of
the owners of Bardstown Internet Service, called to my attention the
fact I failed to put a direct link to the BardstowTourism.com
screensaver in my column.
A direct link would allow users to go directly to the file and
download it.
Lear said that with the increased number of computer viruses and
worms that e-mail themselves to users, people should avoid sending
screensavers and other holiday-related files as e-mail attachments.
The link for the Old Kentucky Home screensaver is on the home page of
www.bardstowntourism.com. If you wish to share it with others, send
them the Web address; don't send it as an attachment. |
