Cyber Sentinel

Pros: Installation was easy, fast and did not require a reboot. Cyber Sentinel integrates with your Windows user accounts. Unique Screen Capture feature, allows administrators to view exactly what the user was viewing during the violation.

Cons: No password recovery (warning: don't forget it.) Easily bypassed and removed. Email notifications require SMTP server (doesn't work for basic yahoo and hotmail accounts). Interface is not intuitive and can be confusing. Limited user profile customization. Extremely easy to bypass.

Summary
Cyber Sentinel’s Internet filter had several great features including: screen captures, time restrictions, application blocking and windows user integration. It was not the most intutive and somewhat confusing to use.
Cyber Sentinel blocked only 20% of the objectionable websites tested and Over-blocked on 40% of the “safe” websites tested.
The reporting/monitoring tools are very basic and need a lot of work. Although the product has no password recovery Cyber Sentinel is extremely easy to bypass and remove.

Installation/Setup
Cyber Sentinel 3.4 was very easy to download and install. With a footprint of 18.9MB it took several minutes to download on a Broadband connection (May take 20-30 minutes on dial-up).


You are prompted to create an Administrator's password (don't forget this, there is no password recovery) and to enter your license key. Cyber Sentinel comes preconfigured to filter with its default settings and will automatically detect the windows user accounts.


Management
Cyber Sentinel automaticaly creates a default group adding all of your windows user accounts with default settings. You can access the main console from your Start menu or by clicking the Cyber Sentinel icon in your system tray (beside your computer clock). The main console is not very user friendly or intuitive.


From the Main Console Administrators can view screen captures, see a list of blocked websites, view chat conversation details, configure your filter mode, manage time restrictions, create a custom list of objectionalbe words and websites, set-up email notifications and manage user profiles.


Accuracy
Cyber Sentinel filters based on two lists of words and phrases: One is a built-in Library of objectionable words and the other a Child Predator Library. You have the choice to me "More" or "Less restrictive", create your own library of words, warn users of potentialy objectionable websites, close the browser, create a screen caputure and/or to secretly monitor online activity (stealth mode).

We tested 2 lists of websites including: adult image searches, MySpace.com accounts, Hate oriented websites, websites that promote hacking, drug use, gambling, adult humor, etc…