Parental control software?????

[nsmith]

My daughter agreed that I could read any and all IM's she received/sent as a condition for allowing her to get a screen name and IM. I am trying to find a good software program that will allow me to do this. I have found a few software downloads online with a flat fee ($30 - $40) also have seen some with monthly or yearly charges. We have an older operating system (Windows 98 )and just don't know which one to choose.
Can anyone out there offer advise??!!

 

[caimakale]

Personally I am partial to key loggers.

The only problem (aside from the massive invasion of privacy), it will log any and all keys...even passwords. It is all kept in an encrypted file, but it will log everything that EVERYONE types.

The good thing about it, is if your daughter trys to get sneaky and talk to people outside of IM (like email), or in private chat and then deletes the logs, the key logger will log it all. Get the right system and it will take pictures of whats on the screen every five minutes..or whatever interval you set it at.

I can't remember the software I used to use, go to downloads.com and search for keylogger. The one I used to use had starr in the name or something similar to that.

 

[txgirl]

bump- My kids are 10 & 8 and our computer is in the hub of the house but we definitely need controls even for accidental entry into a bad site. I like the key logger idea but we need prevention in the first place because mine end up at a bad site by accident.

 

[caimakale]

The firewall I use has parental controls built in. It will restrict access to many sites. I use zone alarm security suite. It has spyware removal, anti-virus, email security, IM security and many other features aside from the protection you get from the firewall.

I think it's a great firewall, and it's probably the best firewall out there (not counting hardware firewalls).

 

[Free4Life11]

Be careful with some of the downloads. Some are pure crap and will slow your connection down to a crawl.

 

[PA DISNEYLOVER]

I use chatwatch. I can read all the IM's my 14 year old writes or recieves.

 

[my3kids]

Does anone have opinions on programs like CyberSafe or Net Nanny? I have been looking into these filters as well and have been surprised at how little information there really is....although a quick google shows all the ways a person can get around any of the filters.