Parental Control Software Reviews

Parental control software enables parents to limit what their children see and read online, manage time spent on the Internet or on the computer, select which other computer programs children can use and monitor and log all internet activity. Although the mere existence of parental control software continues to be controversial, reviews say programs have generally improved to the point that they overcome the objection that they cannot accurately filter websites and content. All parental control programs sometimes over-block or under-block, but performance is now good enough to give reviewers confidence in recommending programs. Reviews also say that any of the top six or so programs are now impossible for kids to circumvent.

Australia-based Choice magazine (a nonprofit organization devoted to comparative reviews) and PC Magazine have the best reviews of parental control software. Both magazines conduct thorough testing and both review current versions of many programs. UK-based Computer Shopper also has quite recent comparative reviews, though the write-ups are not as informative as either PC Magazine or Choice. Britain's WebUser also conducts testing, but is currently more useful as a source for Internet filtering rather than parental control software. MoralMetric.com, a website devoted to "morally friendly" Internet usage, does a thoughtful job of comparatively reviewing and rating filtering products, but does a poor job of distinguishing between current and outdated parental control software.

Though some are clearly better than others, the balanced approach taken by all of these reviewers is impressive. The best reviews point to parent-child communication as the most important tool. Conversely, we found comparative reviews and a wealth of good information on many sales-based websites that attempt to scare parents into buying any product that will yield a commission. Although those review sources are helpful supplementary resources, they are not as credible as the ones named above.

Based on those reviews and descriptions, the tools in both operating systems appear to have some major advantages over third-party products. Many programs, including some of the best, require annual subscriptions. Such programs, including Safe Eyes (*est. $50 per year) and Net Nanny (*est. $50 per year), will stop working if you fail to renew your subscription. Perhaps the presence of Vista and Leopard will force companies to reconsider this annual-fee business model. Vista and Leopard will automatically update and never require additional fees. If you are buying a new computer with Windows Vista or a new Macintosh with Leopard, or plan to upgrade soon, you might consider trying their parental controls before investing in other software.

In addition, a parental control module is often included as part of an Internet-security suite, such as Norton Internet Security (*est. $55). If you already own one of these titles, you should try their included Internet filters before paying extra for standalone software. Reviews say the parental controls included with these suites lack the level of control of CyberPatrol or Safe Eyes, but they are a good start and might be adequate for younger children. Norton Internet Security allows one of four access levels for each user. Parents can set a default configuration for each child, then fine-tune along the way, blocking or allowing specific websites or applications. One missing feature is a scheduling option, so you are unable to monitor each user's Internet activity. For more information on these and other Internet security suites, see the separate ConsumerSearch report on Internet security software.  ... Continued

Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
All The Reviews Reviewed chart.

# of Picks	Model (with Retailer Links)
4	Net Nanny 5.6 (*est. $50 per year)
3	CyberPatrol 7.6 (*est. $40 per year)
2	Safe Eyes 5.0 (*est. $50 per year)
1 Each	Integard, Parental Control Bar, Crawler Parental Controls, Bsafe Online 5.0, CYBERsitter, K9 Web Protection 3.0.23

CyberPatrol, Net Nanny and Safe Eyes top the most reviews. Many sources rank CyberPatrol as one of the three or four best programs, if not the best. Its chief drawback is if you need to protect more than one computer. Safe Eyes 5.0 is a little less versatile than CyberPatrol, but still a top choice in some reviewers' eyes. It has excellent reporting features, can be controlled remotely via the Internet and is one of the few products that's also available in a Mac-compatible version. Although more expensive than CyberPatrol 7.6, it can be installed on up to three computers. The latest version of Net Nanny 5.6 also scores well. It is a particularly good choice for parents looking for a product that's easy to use for them, but hard to defeat for their children. And though they don't appear on our consensus chart, don't overlook the parental control features on the Vista (PC) and Leopard (Mac) operating systems.