Not referring to keeping pesky parents in order, 'parental control' is putting in place policies and protections designed to prevent young minds coming into contact with Net nasties. There are two general areas – stuff you don't want children to see, and people you don't want children to communicate with.
Keeping the internet experience 'clean' for children is a difficult task. There are literally millions of pornography websites, hate websites (racists, anarchists, fascists, sexists, all the -ists that the good readers of The Independent would disagree with), violence websites, etc. etc. Not only are there so many, but new ones constantly pop up, making it all but impossible to keep an up-to-date list of sites to bar.
Besides all these websites which are basically about reading text or looking at images, there are the chat (and now video) sites. MySpace.com came out of nowhere in just two years to become a huge phenomenon, particularly attracting young adults and kids. Find people in your area, that share your interests, that know people you know – all sorts of “communities” are possible and are being formed. Virtual environments are being built online where you can create a completely virtual persona for yourself, and interact with hundreds of other people living an entirely virtual life (complete with money, jobs, advertising). And the latest fad, YouTube.com, is all about letting people see you in action ; post videos of yourself, your friends, your activities, whatever.
All in all, not only are children of this age increasingly exposed to the internet and all it has to offer, they are increasingly a part of it from an early age. All parents with an internet connection or who send kids to a school with internet access need to ask themselves, “How do I deal with this?”. It is another layer on top of child-raising responsibilities, of course, adding to worries over education, health, real live friendships, hobbies & interests, and all the rest.
Technology alas is not likely to provide much of a solution. While internet access can be controlled to some extent, there are always ways round such restrictions. However, it can provide a starting point and at least sets the boundaries and clarifies “the rules”. For example, the ZoneAlarm firewall product (free version available at zonealarm.com, but you'll need a paid version for parental control) provides a regularly updated option to block access to websites in a range of categories (porn, hate, gambling etc.). You can also block access to the web within certain times.
Other commercial products are available (such as Net Nanny), which specifically provide comprehensive if very US-centric control over internet access including different levels for different people on the same computer.
However, at the end of the day, such software ends up slowing down the computer, slowing down the internet, and removing the essential human trait of personal responsibility (parent and child). Perhaps it is better for a child to learn there is plenty of stuff on the internet that is not nice, and best left alone. And always be suspicious of people who want to keep internet discussions a secret. An open relationship between parent and child is much better protection than any technology.
WANTED – topic suggestions for future columns. Send your ideas to - Merlin Pacific IT provide effective & efficient business IT. Also, join VIGNET (Vanuatu IT Users) for emailed discussions, register at tinyurl.com/zcusl
