Web Watcher

Pros: WebWatcher was easy to install and makes it even easier by scanning your computer for known incompatibilities. Remote administration (manage WebWatcher from any internet connection), Screen captures, keystroke logging, and email monitoring.

Cons: Filtering is not enabled by default and requires some setup. Can slow computer performance, easily removed, no multiple user customization, and poor Internet filtering capabilities (black list only).

Summary
WebWatcher was one of the most robust monitoring tools we reviewed. It allows administrators to monitor email, chat, keystrokes, and websites. All settings and reports are viewed via WebWatcher’s remote website allowing administrators to manage from virtually any Internet connection.

Although you cannot create multiple user profiles and its Internet filtering capabilities are not the most robust, you can create a list of websites or keywords to block on. WebWatcher can be uninstalled easily as it is not password protected. In fact some anti-spyware products will detect it and easily remove it from your computer.

Installation/Setup
WebWatcher was very easy to download and install. With a footprint of 2.53MB it took less than a minute to download with a Broadband connection (May take 2-3 minutes on dial-up). Also, WebWatcher will automatically scan your computer for known compatibility issues.


You are then prompted to enter your username and password. Once entered installation will smoothly complete. It is not necessary but recommended that you restart your computer. You are then notified with a message that you can manage your settings by logging-in at www.webwatcherdata.com.

Management
WebWatcher is set to monitor email, chat, keystrokes, websites, and capture screenshots by default. It is not however, set to block objectionable websites by default. WebWatcher is ideal as a monitoring tool but not as an Internet filter. Its filtering settings permit customization for only a single user but do allow you to block on keywords and/or websites.

In addition to monitoring email (web-based and outlook), chat conversations, keystrokes, and websites visited WebWatcher also has a unique alert feature that will take a picture of the screen when specific words are typed or viewed (user specified). It remains hidden while monitoring but can easily be detected and removed with most anti-spyware utilities.

Accuracy
WebWatcher comes with a small list of websites and keywords composed of such categories as: Adult, Cheating, Employment, Gambling, Profanity, Sexual, Violence, Drugs, Dating, and Children. Administrators can add and remove websites and keywords as they see fit.

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…

What are Parental Controls?

Today I wanted to talk a little about Internet Filtering and Parental Controls. I wanted to answer some of the questions I've been asked by friends and family. Who uses Parental Controls? Who needs an Internet filter? What are the best filters available and what's the difference between them? How much should I spend?

Before I jump into these questions I wanted to start with What is an Internet filter (aka Parental Control, Net Nanny, web filter...)?
An Internet filter is simply something that sits between the Internet and the end-user, which filters "objectionable" content. Most filters allow parents to determine what is objectionable including: Pornography, Violence, Adult Language, Gambling, Lingerie, Drugs, Alcohol, Weapons and so forth. Net Nanny, for example, blocks these categories by default and allows parents to customize settings if necessary.

Who uses parental controls?
Everyone and anyone. The real question is why they use Internet filtering. Most people I've talked to use it because something bad happened on the computer. Like what? Little Johnny's friend came over one night and searched for boobies on Google and mom walked in. Mom doesn't want Johnny looking at that stuff and decided to put a Net Nanny on the computer.

What's that, you need another example? I understand, here's one more. Dad enjoys looking at random funny stuff. Mom and Dad are religious and believe that pornography is not something they want in their home. Dad does a quick Google search on celebrity jokes and clicks the third link found on the page. To his dismay he is attacked with 100 pop-ups of nude celebrity pictures. Mom walks in again (she must have some sixth sense) and now you have 10 years of marriage counseling and a second mortgage. So to reiterate, who uses parental controls, it's important that everyone, whom doesn't desire objectionable content in their home, have some sort of Net Nanny.

Who Needs an Internet Filter?
Need is the keyword here. The perceived need usually outlines or fulfills another need. For example, a school that needs government money may be required to have Internet filtering on all of their computers. Or a home that needs a father figure may be required to have a filter because Mom won't stay with dad while he stays up late surfing porn. We all need filtering companies to exist to protect our freedom of speech, give the family control of what's allowed in the household. Otherwise the government will take that role (China).

What are the best Internet Filtering options available?
Now it's time to get to the guts of this discussion. A large portion of this is dependent upon your objective. For me, I prefer to have everything allowed except pornography. For someone else they may want to spy on their kids or spouse. Another may want to block everything except one or two sites, for the kids. You can visit www.child-internet-safety.com and view each Internet filter side-by-side for feature comparison, but I recommend Net Nanny. Net Nanny has been around the longest, it has all the right features, and at $40 per year is very affordable. You can get to Net Nanny here: www.netnanny.com

How much should I spend?
We have 3 computers in our house and would spend about $80 per year on Internet filtering. I wouldn't recommend buying a filter without trying it out first and most filters offer some sort of trial. Net Nanny has one here: http://www.netnanny.com/account/trialware?product=160 Make sure it meets your expectations first. What about the free filters? Try them too. Be cautious though, make sure you can trust the brand and product first, a lot of them will gather personal information or leave spyware on your computer.

This was just a simple overview for those of you searching for Internet filters, parental controls, internet nannys or whatever you call it. I hope this helps someone. Leave a comment or tell your story.