Parental control software What can parental controls do?
Parental controls are usually most effective when they are used as part of a strategy for protecting children, rather than relied upon solely. Clearly it helps if children also understand that they should never give private information out to anyone on the internet or by email - even things like age, gender, name, where they live or their school. See our guide to understanding internet security terms for more.
If you keep your family computer somewhere central in the home, such as the living room, this also helps cut down the risks. Have a look at our advice on child internet safety for more information on keeping kids safe online.
Parental control software can be used to help in the following areas:
PC system protection
This limits the degree to which specific users can affect files and settings on the PC. For example, certain types of user may not be granted full administrative rights over the computer, meaning that they may not be able to install or remove programs, change system settings or delete anything other than their own personal files.
Most computers allow you to set up individual ‘Limited’ or ‘Standard’ user accounts that effectively provide this kind of ring-fenced, restricted-rights environment, which can help to protect both your valuable data and the computer itself. We have more information on user accounts.
Setting time limits on your PC
You may want to limit the amount of time your child spends on the computer and/or the internet. Time limiting is a central part of most parental control systems; the best ones let you to specify how many hours a particular individual can use the PC on each day of the week. Time-limiting tools are often included with the basic parental controls that come on your PC and are also frequently included with third-party parental control software.
Games are rated as suitable for specific ages
Programs and games
Parental control software can provide program-blocking facilities, often allowing you to restrict games by age rating or prevent users from running specific programs.
Web filtering
Many parental controls allow you to restrict internet access to prevent your children from being exposed to inappropriate websites. They usually do this by using a database of blacklisted websites that are known to be unsuitable, dangerous or unsecure, along with a list of websites that are known to be safe. In many cases, these lists will be updated on a regular basis to provide your family with ongoing protection, and it may also be possible to customise them yourself, allowing or restricting specific sites as required. Some web filters also use keywords to block specific web pages or sites. Again, the list of banned keywords can usually be customised by the parent.
Some computers come with web filtering tools built in, but they can also be added separately. It is also possible to restrict children to using child-friendly search engines, such as Yahooligans and Ask Kids, which filter out unsuitable sites automatically, or you can customise the filtering options of your regular search engine, with a tool like Google SafeSearch.
Activity reports
Some parental controls can produce a report based on your child’s computer activity, including which programs were used and which websites were visited during any session. These can help to build a clear picture of how your family is using the PC.
Mobile phone protection
Many mobile phones now provide internet access, social networking and instant messaging, along with voice and text chat. As such it’s vital to make sure that your child’s mobile device is safe for them to use. Thankfully, most major UK mobile operators provide content filtering and parental control services. These aren’t usually activated by default, however, so you will need to contact your mobile provider for more information. Here are some links to the safety web pages for the main UK mobile operators:
• Orange
• O2
• T Mobile
• Vodafone
The Xbox 360 is popular for online gaming
Other devices
There are many other devices in our homes that parents may need to consider, including games consoles, satellite and cable TV services and even TVs and DVD players.
Most of the current games consoles offer parental controls that can be applied. Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Sony’s Playstation 3 and Playstation Portable and Nintendo’s Wii all include settings that can prevent children from playing unsuitable games or watching inappropriate movies.
Your digital TV set-top box should provide a Pin number-based protection system to limit access to unsuitable cable or satellite programmes, such as post-watershed broadcasts and adult channels. Refer to Sky and Virgin Media directly for more.
Similarly, many modern TVs, DVD and Blu-ray players feature a PIN protection system that can restrict viewing. Check your device’s instruction manual for specific information.
