No pr0n, please.
May 9, 2011 10:33 AM Subscribe
What's the best Net-Nanny-Type software out there for my 10 year old daughter's new MacBook Air?
I can't make heads or tails out of all the stuff that's out there. The built-in parental controls on the MacBook are too much. I'm not looking for Teletubby level protection, more like Justin Beiber level. She's a mature kid and has really taken to the iMovie stuff like a duck to water. I'm not too overly protective of her, but I do want to prevent her getting onto adult sites out of curiosity, which she has in spades.
What should I use?
I can't make heads or tails out of all the stuff that's out there. The built-in parental controls on the MacBook are too much. I'm not looking for Teletubby level protection, more like Justin Beiber level. She's a mature kid and has really taken to the iMovie stuff like a duck to water. I'm not too overly protective of her, but I do want to prevent her getting onto adult sites out of curiosity, which she has in spades.
What should I use?
The reality is that you cannot block access to all the porn available. No filter can keep up with the amount of material added to the internet daily. Finding a good filter can help, but talking to your child is the only way she is going to end up not on this type of site.
Believe me, my parents tried very hard to just lock it down. It's.. not possible.
posted by lakerk at 10:49 AM on May 9, 2011 [2 favorites]
Believe me, my parents tried very hard to just lock it down. It's.. not possible.
posted by lakerk at 10:49 AM on May 9, 2011 [2 favorites]
I'm not too overly protective of her, but I do want to prevent her getting onto adult sites out of curiosity, which she has in spades.
If she's very curious and you are net technically inclined, it will be very easy for her to figure out how to get around any blocking software you install.
posted by nooneyouknow at 10:59 AM on May 9, 2011 [2 favorites]
If she's very curious and you are net technically inclined, it will be very easy for her to figure out how to get around any blocking software you install.
posted by nooneyouknow at 10:59 AM on May 9, 2011 [2 favorites]
If she mainly has access to the internet at home, I highly recommend using OpenDNS. This is a free service for home use, and you can control what passes through your router. Unless she's able to pay of a vpn (which is unlikely), or brings it to libraries/other houses, it's pretty much foolproof. You can choose from a range of categories to block, and OpenDNS is quick to block proxy servers too as soon as they become popular.
She could physically reset your router and wipe the OpenDNS settings, but this would probably be obvious.
posted by a womble is an active kind of sloth at 11:00 AM on May 9, 2011
She could physically reset your router and wipe the OpenDNS settings, but this would probably be obvious.
posted by a womble is an active kind of sloth at 11:00 AM on May 9, 2011
Thirding OpenDNS. One advantage is that setting your router to use it accomplishes the same filtering on all devices in the house [iPads, iPods, smartphones, etc.]
The disadvantage might be that it accomplishes the same filtering on all devices in the house [iPads, iPods, smartphones, etc.]. ;) For example, if you want to keep your daughter away from the adult sites but still have access to them yourself. In that case, you could set her MacBook to use it, along with her iPod if she has one.
posted by chazlarson at 11:06 AM on May 9, 2011
The disadvantage might be that it accomplishes the same filtering on all devices in the house [iPads, iPods, smartphones, etc.]. ;) For example, if you want to keep your daughter away from the adult sites but still have access to them yourself. In that case, you could set her MacBook to use it, along with her iPod if she has one.
posted by chazlarson at 11:06 AM on May 9, 2011
I've spent a good amount of time working with that age group. Even the most mature are going to do things we'd rather they didn't.
This is the extreme answer: Block Port 80 (the web-browsing port) or perhaps the Internet entirely when you're not around for her computer's MAC address (all devices have this unique ID, it has nothing to do with Mac computers). Or Whitelist a handful of kid-friendly sites and search-engines.
At the end of the day, though, the evils of the Internet are only as far as her best friend's house.
posted by jander03 at 11:14 AM on May 9, 2011
This is the extreme answer: Block Port 80 (the web-browsing port) or perhaps the Internet entirely when you're not around for her computer's MAC address (all devices have this unique ID, it has nothing to do with Mac computers). Or Whitelist a handful of kid-friendly sites and search-engines.
At the end of the day, though, the evils of the Internet are only as far as her best friend's house.
posted by jander03 at 11:14 AM on May 9, 2011
Another approach is logging instead of blocking: some routers offer total logging of all websites visited. You just have to review the logs every few days to see where she's been.
posted by GuyZero at 11:21 AM on May 9, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by GuyZero at 11:21 AM on May 9, 2011 [1 favorite]
Another vote for OpenDNS. I recommend it to parents since our student laptops don't have software filters for when they're at home. Plus OpenDNS is harder to get around than resetting the root password which means easy NetNanny disabling.
OS X also has Parental Controls in System Preferences which allows some website restricting and Safari logging.
posted by jmd82 at 11:32 AM on May 9, 2011
OS X also has Parental Controls in System Preferences which allows some website restricting and Safari logging.
posted by jmd82 at 11:32 AM on May 9, 2011
OpenDNS has the option of logging, thought if you want if for more long periods (more than two weeks), you need to pay for a different version.
I think logging is a fairly high-maintenance way of keeping an eye on things. It's definitely useful, but I seem to visit a few hundred sites per day, so due to the volume it can get out of control quickly.
posted by a womble is an active kind of sloth at 12:20 PM on May 9, 2011
I think logging is a fairly high-maintenance way of keeping an eye on things. It's definitely useful, but I seem to visit a few hundred sites per day, so due to the volume it can get out of control quickly.
posted by a womble is an active kind of sloth at 12:20 PM on May 9, 2011
On the flipside, with just about any blocking software you're going to run into irritations. I can't even count the number of news stories I've read about kids in schools and whatever that couldn't do research on breast cancer, or look up information on parenthood.
The best blocking software is you.
(Someone mentioned the library -- you might ask if your local library has computers for children/teenagers, what software they use, and their opinions of the software. Is it very effective, have children had any issues with researching things, etc etc.)
posted by Heretical at 1:05 PM on May 9, 2011 [1 favorite]
The best blocking software is you.
(Someone mentioned the library -- you might ask if your local library has computers for children/teenagers, what software they use, and their opinions of the software. Is it very effective, have children had any issues with researching things, etc etc.)
posted by Heretical at 1:05 PM on May 9, 2011 [1 favorite]
One free alternative is K9 Web Protection, which is pretty detailed and has lots of options. However, Heretical's point is well taken.
posted by ZeusHumms at 4:44 PM on May 9, 2011
posted by ZeusHumms at 4:44 PM on May 9, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by samsara at 10:45 AM on May 9, 2011