Content Filtering is Essential; Thankfully, There are Plenty of Options
Content filtering is absolutely essential, especially if you have a family. The internet is full of useful, interesting, and fun content. But it’s also full of offensive and dangerous content. Content filters help make sure your family has access only to the good stuff—however you define it. And they also help protect your computer against viruses and malware.
Thankfully, there are a lot of great content filters out there, some of which you don’t even have to pay for. The latest versions of both Windows and Mac OS X actually come with pretty good filtering capabilities built in. And there’s a wide selection of third-party filters that allow you to do everything from schedule access times for your kids to set up email reports of websites visited. Some filters allow you to “whitelist” and “blacklist” websites (i.e., choose to allow or block websites specifically). And some allow you to filter at the network level, meaning that the controls you choose get applied to any computer accessing the internet from your home.
Which filtering solution is the best? Well, that depends on your family’s particular needs. Some families want to limit children’s internet access to only sites they choose. Others want to place constraints on social media. Still others want to allow a good amount of freedom while monitoring their children’s activity online. So your needs will determine which filter is best for you. As always, we are more than happy to discuss your options with you personally; we have used a number of filters in a number of different instances. But for now, here’s a list of content filters we like with some basic information on each one. As always, don’t hesitate to call with questions!
Our Favorite Content Filters
| Product Name |
Filters for Your |
Notable Features |
Price |
| Windows Live Family Safety |
PC (Windows 7 or Vista) |
Whitelisting and blacklisting, great content filtering, great filtering-level options, and activity reporting.
|
Free! |
| Mac OS X Parental Controls |
Mac |
User-friendly content filtering, whitelisting, access scheduling, and activity reporting. |
Free! |
| Covenant Eyes |
PC (Accountability service available for Mac) |
Accountability reporting through email, great content filtering for PCs.
|
$4.99/mo for filtering only, $8.99/mo for accountability only, $10.49/mo for both |
| OpenDNS |
Entire home or business network |
Whitelisting and blacklisting, great content filtering at the network level, filtering-level options, some reporting.
|
Free for home users, $5/user/year for small businesses |
| Mobicip |
iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, or Windows Phone 7 Device |
Provides a mobile browser with built-in filtering capabilities, which you can control from the web. |
$4.99 for the browser app, $10.99/year for web-based parental controls |
| CyberSitter |
PC |
Content filtering, email and social media monitoring, access scheduling. |
$39.95/year for up to 3 computers |
| SafeEyes |
PC or Mac |
Content filtering, good access scheduling controls. |
$49.95/year for up to 3 computers |