Research shows the children of today engage with digital devices almost constantly. One well-researched estimate suggests that kids between the ages of 8 and 18 spend 11.5 hours per day using technology – computers, laptops, pads, televisions, smartphones, video games, and the like – with many of those hours spent engaged with two or more technologies simultaneously. Since most kids are awake for only 15 or 16 hours per day, somewhere between 71 and 76 percent of their day is digital. And the simple fact is you can’t be there 24/7 looking over your child’s shoulder to make sure he or she is using this technology wisely.

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One reasonably effective way to protect your child from inappropriate online content and contacts – online porn, cyberbullying, digital predators, and the like – is to install parental control software on his or her computer and other digital devices. This software must be installed on all of the child’s digitally interactive devices, including smartphones. You may not realize that this, but anything your child can do on his or her laptop, he or she can also do on a smartphone.

It is recommended that you discuss the installation of parental control software up-front with your child. Let the child know that you are doing this for his or her protection, and because you know that he or she doesn’t want you constantly hovering and watching their every move. Your child will appreciate your honesty, even if he or she doesn’t like the idea of his or her online movements being restricted and potentially reported to you. It helps to explain that as long as he or she is not trying to access inappropriate content or talk to someone who might be dangerous, the software does absolutely nothing. A great way to get your child on board with what you’re doing is to allow that child input into the process of selecting a filtering and accountability level. If the child feels that he or she has had a say in the matter, the software will be much better received; it might even be appreciated.

We can’t state this strongly enough: Surreptitiously installing parental control software is NOT recommended. Your child will realize you’ve done it – usually sooner rather than later – and your secrecy will create a huge resentment.

Before discussing the efficacy of specific programs, a general discussion of what parents should be looking for in a parental control software is in order. The essentials are:

1. Customizable Controls. The better products have various present filtering levels, as well as blacklisting or whitelisting of certain sites – meaning sites that would normally be allowed can be manually blocked (blacklisted) and sites that would normally be blocked can be manually allowed (whitelisting).
2. Specific Features. Various softwares offer different degrees of functionality. In addition to customizable filtering, parents should also look for some combination of the following:
   • the ability to monitor social media sites
   • the ability to block obscene language
   • the ability to stop your child from uploading photos and videos
   • the ability to monitor online conversations (emails, IMs)
   • the ability to block certain activities (violent video games, gambling, etc.)
   • key-logging (the ability to monitor everything your child types onto his or her digital device)
   • the ability to take and record screenshots (“photos” of what your child is looking at online)
3. Accountability. The software should notify you about the nature and extent of your child’s digital activity. The accountability feature should be flexible, meaning you can get reports at regular intervals or on demand, and alerts in real-time if your child uses (or attempts to use) his or her digital device in a prohibited way.
4. Proxy Blocking. Tech savvy kids sometimes try to use proxies (intermediary servers or browsers) to circumvent filtering software. The best softwares prevent such abuses. Ideally, the program will notify you if your child attempts to uninstall or circumvent the program.
5. Ease of Use. The software should be easy to install and to customize. Ideally, you should be able to globally configure the software, establishing settings on all of your child’s devices simultaneously instead of dealing with each machine individually.
6. Availability for Your Child’s Devices. Not all softwares work on every digital device. In fact, many are quite limited. It is important to make sure a product works on your child’s devices before you purchase it. It is also important to see how many devices the license covers. Ideally, you want to cover all of your child’s equipment with only one license.

It is important to remember that even the best parental control software is not perfect. Most kids can find ways to access whatever it is they’re looking for – if not on their devices, then on someone else’s. As such, parental control software programs should not be viewed as enforcers of your will; instead, they should instead be looked at as a tool of parenting that can help you to protect your child.

Each parental control software product offers different features. The following short reviews discuss the effectiveness of each.

THE GOLD STANDARD

Net Nanny
http://www.netnanny.com/
Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS
$59.98 for up to three computers; $12.99 for one Android device; $4.99 for one iOS device

Net Nanny offers top-notch filtering and accountability for your entire system of digital devices, both Windows and Mac. Happily, Net Nanny’s availability and functionality on mobile devices has caught up with its overall quality on computers and laptops. As such, all of the major features parents are looking for are now available for all of their kid’s devices.

OTHER RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS

AVG Family Safety
http://www.avg.com/us-en/avg-family-safety
Windows, Android, iOS
$49.95 for up to three computers, free downloads in app stores for both Android and iOS devices

AVG Family Safety offers useful filtering and accountability features for Windows based computers and Android mobile devices, along with iOS mobile devices. However, it is not available for MacOS computers. For PC users this software is a good option. For Apple users, it isn’t.

BSecure Family Safety
http://www.bsecure.com/
Windows, Android, iOS
$49.95 license covers up to three devices

BSecure offers top-notch filtering and accountability for Windows based computers, Android devices, and iOS devices. It is not available for MacOS computers. One nice feature with BSecure is that your child can override the blocking of a website with a password, but the site visit will be logged and you will be notified. This is good for kids doing research for school who may not have time to “get permission” to visit a perfectly acceptable (or necessary) website. Another nice feature is the safety lock option, which totally locks out the Internet if your child goes wild trying to access blocked sites.

CovenantEyes
http://www.covenanteyes.com/
Windows, MacOS (limited), Android, iOS (limited)
First user – accountability $8.99/month, filtering $4.99/month, both $10.49/month; second user – accountability $2.00/month, filtering $1.50/month, both $3.50/month

For Windows and Android devices, CovenantEyes offers all of the basic functions that parents are looking for. As of now, functionality on MacOS and iOS devices is limited to accountability, with no filtering. One nice feature is that if the software shows no Internet usage for several days – indicating the user might be circumventing the program by using another browser – the parent gets an email. For PC and Android users this is a solid, though slightly expensive option. It is not a good option for Apple users.

McAfee Family Protection
http://home.mcafee.com/store/family-protection
Windows and Android
$49.99 for up to three computers; $19.99 Android app

For Windows and Android users, McAfee offers the full range filtering and accountability that parents seek. Unfortunately, McAfee no longer offers parental control software for MacOS and iOS devices, so Apple users are out of luck. If the software fits your devices, this is a good option. Otherwise, not so much.

Norton Online Family Premier
http://us.norton.com/norton-family-premier/?inid=us_hho_topnav_pd_family_premiere
Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS
$49.99; free download for Android and iOS devices with subscription to Norton Online Family Premier

Norton Online Family Premier offers all of the filtering and accountability features that recovering parents are looking for. Best of all, it functions on a wide range of digital devices, regardless of operating system. This product has improved in the last year, eliminating several minor flaws in the previous version, and it is now a recommended option. As of now it is slightly less expensive than Net Nanny.

LESS EFFECTIVE OPTIONS

CyberPatrol
http://www.cyberpatrol.com/
Windows
$39.95 for up to three computers

CyberPatrol’s accountability function is limited in that it can send real-time alerts via text but not email. However, the real issue is that CyberPatrol is not available for mobile devices. If it was, it would probably be a solid option.

CYBERSitter
http://cybersitter.com/
Windows
$39.95 for up to three computers

For PC users, CYBERSitter does a decent job of filtering websites, IMs, and emails, but a lot of the features that parents find helpful, such as fully customizable filtering and real-time accountability reports, are missing. The killer, however, is that it’s not available for mobile devices.

eBlaster
http://www.spectorsoft.com/products/eblaster
Windows and Android
$99.95 for one license

eBlaster offers limited filtering features. Basically it is more of a monitoring and accountability software than a filtering software. Thus, it doesn’t offer as much protection as most parents would like. It’s also overpriced. On the plus side, it is available for Android.

imView
http://www.imview.com/
Windows
$59.99 annual subscription

There are limited filtering and accountability features. In other words, imView is primarily a monitoring program. There are no password controls, so it is easy to change the settings. There is no time restriction feature. The program is relatively easy to circumvent. It is not available for Android or iOS devices. This is not a great tool for protective parents.

Kidswatch
http://www.kidswatch.com/
Windows
$49.95 for one license

Kidswatch has all the basic filtering and accountability features that parents look for. Unfortunately, the software is not available for smartphones and other mobile devices. If Kidswatch adds Android devices, it could move onto the recommended list.

Profil Parental Filter 2
http://www.profiltechnology.com/en/
Windows and Android
$39.95 for up to three computers, Android protection purchased separately

There is a lot to like about Profil Parental Filter 2. Unfortunately, some of the features most important to parents are not included, most notably real-time accountability alerts. If this and a few other shortcomings are addressed, this program could easily move onto the recommended list.

PureSight PC
http://www.puresight.com/
Windows
$59.90 for one computer, $79.90 for three computers

Filtering is fine with PureSight PC. Unfortunately, real-time alerts are available only by email, not text messaging, which for most parents is the preferred method. Even worse, Puresight PC is not available for mobile devices.

SentryPC
http://www.sentrypc.com/
Windows
$49.95 for up to three computers

SentryPC offers the usual filtering and accountability features. Unfortunately, it is not available for mobile devices. Thus it is not recommended.

WebWatcher
http://www.webwatchernow.com
Windows, MacOS
$97.00 for Windows, $97.00 for MacOS

WebWatcher is a keystroke logging program that also takes continuous screenshots. It does not offer the filtering features that most parents are looking for.