TYPES OF PARENTAL CONTROLS

 

TYPES OF PARENTAL CONTROLS

So, how can we build our own parental control, the one that best suits our family? It will depend on the age of our children, our digital skills, our capacity for family dialogue, our free time, our values ​​... These are our 7 pieces, some compatible with each other and all based on the last and most important (you have to read to the end to find out).

1. in the digital door of the house: Router and dns servers. The router is the digital door of our house and the best option to manage online browsing restrictions when several people connect to the internet with different devices. Exercising parental control from this digital door, parents can control and filter the content accessed and accessible from all connected devices, determine connection time limits and apply web filters to prevent children from reaching inadvisable websites. Most security and parental control software available on the market allow filters to be added to the router. Also, with certain router models. We will be able to limit the hours of internet use for our children, filter the content they can see, etc. Brands like linksys and belkin usually have built-in parental controls. This option is quite powerful. And MyTorch, for example, is a project currently available only in the United States in which parental control becomes the basis of the router itself. The most! There are also systems through filtering by dns servers (domain name system) for more advanced users, which are an interesting solution because it can be applied to all devices and operating systems in the house.  

2. On the apparatus in question: settings on computers, mobiles or tablets. All the devices that we have at home (even many of those that we buy as toys for children) include parental control 'packages'; in fact, it is one of the most common ways to control internet browsing and block access to inappropriate content. In the windows and apple operating systems there is this option; and on each tablet or smartphone you can also go to settings and change aspects of the configuration in terms of connection hours or accesses. Here you can see how to activate parental control on iPhone and iPad; and in android devices you can find the way to configure it in settings (it varies a lot depending on the mobile brands). This is precisely why google is working to unify the way of exercising parental control from the Google play store and, soon, through family link  (currently only available in some countries).  

3. In the appliance software: computer control programs. They are the classic programs; protection packs against the 'dangers of the internet', mainly viruses. Sometimes anti- malware or anti-virus programs incorporate parental controls. And vice versa. You can block websites, set screen time limits, control online and social media activity, monitor chat conversations or receive a summary of your child's online life . The classics: Kaspersky, Norton, MacAfee, safe eyes or panda, for example. The need to be protected online makes technology companies continue to seek global solutions, and Telefónica has recently presented a pack that offers parental control incorporated into digital insurance and many more services...

Keep in mind: they usually have an initial cost and sometimes a monthly subscription cost. Useful for all ages, although it is not the most intuitive solution to install and is usually designed more for computers than for other types of devices (that is why many brands have launched applications for mobile phones).

4. When browsing the internet: filters in browsers. Browsers offer different ways to filter the websites that you don't want your children to reach. Safari, chrome and internet explorer let you select sites and domains that you want to block, for example. With Firefox, its prefer: safe application recognizes parental controls that are already active in your operating system. It might not seem like it, but it works, although you have to spend time configuring the filters. There are many ways to do it and each browser has its own 'modus operandi', although the usual thing is to go to settings (or similar) and mark the types of websites you want to disable.

What will you get? That every time the child (or you, depending on the user) want to reach a non-recommended website, the computer will show you a blank screen. Most parents find this option uncomfortable because it limits our own browsing (unless we create independent browsing profiles, with our own for children). In this type of parental control, different prevention techniques are used: white lists (allowed) vs. Black (denied); keyword blocking (verification of website content; and restriction of access to sites that have certain words ("porn", "sex", "drugs", "kill" ...). Many options allow you to customize the severity criteria (how many times must a word appear to consider the site as unsuitable?) And even select the words by categories and adding words specifically indicated by the user.  

5. When browsing the internet:  there are tools that give access to pages or content suitable for the little ones in the house. They have a design and characteristics appropriate to that audience; and they allow the use of different profiles depending on the age of the user. In the case of browsers (such as explorer but for children), especially recommended are tweens browser , kido'z , zoodles , magic desktop (windows only) and Kidbox . As for search engines that offer "safe" results: kiddle , infant search and bunis . Youtube kids is also included in this safe children's browsing options drawer, which is the children's version of the popular video network. Absolutely recommended if you have young children.  

6. Apps for tablets and smartphones (and their versions on the web):  this possibility is the one with the fastest growth (our favorites are: Qustodio , netnanny , netsanity , parentkit (only ios) and  PlaytimeKidCrono -more time control than content- ) . The reason for their usefulness: first, they are easy to install and check; and secondly, children connect more to the internet through mobile devices than through computers, they have a mobile phone every time they are small. And the biggest problem is not only that they access inappropriate content, but that they abuse the connection time (also at night), that all kinds ofapps , that 'mistreat' your personal data or that messages are exchanged with malicious strangers or acquaintances.  

7. You:  let's not forget that all these tools in no way replace our supervision, our communication with children to find out what interests them about the internet, how they use it, what they are looking for ... To teach them to navigate with common sense and caution . Parents are the best parental control and it is not only about control but also and above all about guide them.