Filter programs can keep online predators away from kids
By Edward C. Baig
USA Today
Shady characters hang out in the virtual playgrounds of cyberspace, just as they do in the physical world.
Online predators loiter in chat rooms, dispatch pornographic spam and might try to lure youngsters to in-person meetings.
In a 2000 study, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Justice Department said that one of every five youths between ages 10 and 17 surveyed said they had received a sexual solicitation over the Net in the previous year.
While no protective measure is foolproof, parents who trust their kids at the PC can help them safely use the riches of the information age.
Parents might also consider programs that attempt to filter inappropriate content and block access to objectionable sites. CyberPatrol, Net Nanny and Predator Guard, a subset of a broader program called Cyber Sentinel, are three useful, albeit imperfect programs.
Predator Guard ($30, www.securitysoft.com) is the simplest to set up and master. The program's sole purpose is to monitor in real time kids' conversations in chat rooms and via instant messages and e-mails. When suspect phrases arise (e.g., "no one must ever know about us" or "are you home alone?"), Predator Guard can warn the child or the parent.
Working with law enforcement, Security Software developed a database based on studying hundreds of hours of illicit chats. You can add your own words, phrases and numbers to be kept out of bounds (for example, a credit-card account).
When an alarm is triggered, Predator Guard can lock down the application in which the questionable dialogue takes place; the application can be reopened only with the proper password. Parents also can run Predator Guard in stealth mode so that Junior doesn't even know he or she is being monitored. In either case, Predator Guard can e-mail you when a violation may have taken place. The program captures a screen image of the suspicious encounter.
Net Nanny 5 ($40, www.netnanny.com) and SurfControl's CyberPatrol ($14.95 for 3 months or $39 a year, www.surfcontrol.com) are more versatile parental control programs. They can restrict connect time online, stymie file sharing (music and images), allow parents to enter personal info to be kept off-limits and block questionable sites by their Web addresses or keywords.
The default settings in CyberPatrol block access to violent, sexually explicit, drug, gambling and other sites. Parents can tweak the settings to block — or permit — access to additional sites.
During brief tests, both CyberPatrol and Net Nanny worked adequately for the most part, although neither proved flawless. Each of the programs let you set up different privileges for different family members, but they could be much clearer on who is being monitored at any one moment.
The two programs sometimes erred in the degree to which they blocked certain sites while permitting others to slip through. For example, Net Nanny prevented visits to several "marijuana" Web sites, even those whose purpose was to dissuade drug use.
Communication key
Protecting kids takes common sense and plenty of parent-child communication. For starters, check out your Internet provider. AOL and MSN deserve kudos for enhanced parental controls. Also periodically revisit the following tips from online child safety experts:
Know what your kids are doing.
Screen the sites your children visit. Place the computer in a highly visible place, rather than in a bedroom. Know their buddy lists and, if necessary, restrict correspondence.
Tell kids to keep personal information private.
This goes beyond name, password, phone number and address. Never have them give out where you work, where siblings go to school, what they want to buy, etc. Make sure the children's screen names aren't too risqué and don't reveal personal details.
Warn kids that people aren't always what they seem.
If someone starts asking personal questions or makes them feel unsafe, have them log off and notify you, a librarian or a teacher, depending on where they are. Report any unsettling activity to your Internet provider, law enforcement or the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children CyberTipline (www.cybertipline.com).
