UKC

Hi guys, a friend has asked me to suggest and help set up a net filter to stop her son from watching p orn, and I think it also might help if she can set a time restriction on his browsing too (he tends to be up until ridiculous times). I know there's loads of free software for this but wondered if anyone has had any experience with them and can recommend an easy to use but reliable one.

In reply to Scarab9:

what ever software you use on the PC, the lad will probably find a way around if he's smart.

so look at their router and see if it's possible to set up adult filtering and timed browsing on that and make sure the password on it is bombproof.

In reply to rallymania:

ooh good thinking! I'll find out what router she's got.

In reply to Scarab9:

Procon is pretty decent for firefox, obviously you'd have to disable iexplore.exe so that browsing couldn't take place via another browser. You'd then have the problem of firefox being loaded in safe mode which removes addons and obviously that removes the filtering. The router whitelist is a good idea, but won't work because content is easily made unfiltered and many free porn sites don't identify as such (or even identify as sports sites etc to bypass base filtering).

Personally I think such filtering is draconian, timed browsing is never going to work unless he's really young. I remember my parents tried it when I was 13 and that's going back 14 years. Lasted about a week I think

In reply to Scarab9:
I believe most of the larger internet providers now have a filter that operates at the service level.

However, if her son is a teenager, I would hope that she would be able to talk to him about it. I am also very concerned at how readily parents are to allow TVs and computers into children's bedrooms when they should be tucked up in bed getting much needed rest. If her wireless router is downstairs, she could always just turn that off when it is time for lights out but bear in mind that teenagers of today are probably more resourceful than their parents.

In reply to ByEek:

well I'm not going to get in to that debate, but knowing the family very well I agree with her reasons for wanting to take the steps.

In reply to Scarab9:

Fair enough. I don't hold much hope for actually stopping him though. If he is really determined, it isn't that hard to get around whatever measures she puts into place... if they are in the home that is.

In reply to ByEek:

If it was done at an ISP level that'd mean hard filtering that kind of content for everyone, not just the son, and again it's far from perfect filtering (and can still be easily avoided completely by just using a different dns server or a decent vpn).

In reply to Scarab9:

By age 13 I could easily dodge filters and clear my history .
Rather than engaging in a arms race against a multimillion dollar industry which wants your child to pay for porn , I would recommend talking it through properly .
Explain in no uncertain terms that watching blondes from Latvia cavorting about is a seriously crap choice to make for a number of reasons .
1: objectification of women is pathetic and outdated . It is also the root cause of international sex slavery and trafficking of women .
2 : Computer viruses are found in abundance on porn sites . You will feel awkward when you have to explain to the computer repair man exactly how you destroyed your Alienware gaming laptop.....
3 : porn wastes time . Rather than sitting in a dark room watching adult material , young lads need to be outdoors getting fit and confident , or indoors becoming academic geniuses . Porn basically robs young people of their own time .


Of course , you may disagree with these objections . But if you don't think porn is wrong , why stop your kids from viewing it ?

In reply to SethChili:

ffs, why is every simple question and opening for a host of judgements from people who don't know any of the context? I'm well aware that with enough research you can get around any blocks put in place, I'm well aware of the nature of pornography and of teenage lads (he's 12 by the way), and I'm also aware of the details and history surrounding the request.

You guys might know the rest, but you DON'T know the last point which is rather key. You have no idea what discussions or steps have been made prior, you don't know the lads history, you don't know anything about the parenting style. So feel free to answer the question asked but for once maybe don't use this post as an excuse for you to try and look down on the rest of the world from the moral and intellectual high ground you feel you're on.

In reply to Scarab9:

Easy fella. I think the answer you can take from this thread in answer to your question is that there are indeed free internet filters you can install. Some will be easier to use than others and some will be more effective than others. But all are easily avoided and worked around with minimal effort so if the goal is to stop this 12 year old lad (of whom we know nothing) from watching undesirable stuff on the net, a more direct and engaging approach is more probably desirable.

If however, the goal is to make his mother to think that she is stopping her kid watching p orn, then any will do.

In reply to Scarab9:

I'm on Virgin Broadband and there is an account level Web Safe option. This will prevent access at router level, so stops mobile phones etc as well.
The only thing is, since I've switched it on, my work laptop cannot access the router. I've only changed it recently, to try to pre-empt this problem, so not sure if it's a coincidence or if the two issues are connected somehow.

In reply to Scarab9:

I don't think that anyone is judging here.
Offering advice based on personal experience is not taking some kind of moral high ground .
The general sum of most of most of the replies has been that filters are easily got around by a curious young person and having a proper discussion will be more effective than employing net nanny type software .

In reply to Scarab9:

Open dns is worth a look. For it to be effective, you will need to be able to set the dns addresses on the router not on each device, and set then set up the router to block requests to use an alternative dns. Don't think it can be time managed though.

Loads of stuff on line about it including a useful open dns forum that will help you get it set up.

In reply to Scarab9:

Just pretend you've done it, give the kid a break!

In reply to Submit to Gravity:


No way! I had to work hard to find porn as a youth, why should this generation have it any easier. I'm sure the challenge makes it far more exciting

In reply to richyfenn:

Yeah, you're right. Sod him. We had to search hedgerows for a scrap of sodden readers' wives, and they've got a million hours of hardcore video action on tap.

In reply to Submit to Gravity:
Please, we had to sit through the agony of dial up internet speeds. Then someone would decide they needed to make a phone call and the dialup would get unplugged and you'd have to start buffering all over again. Took a whole night to see a single boob.

In reply to Removed User:

I've done the hedgerows and dial up, I've paid my dues and climbed the ladder of access rights.

Perhaps as blocking seems limited, how about monitoring? If websites visited can be logged which includes proxy sites, then you can use paranoia as their filter