These software programs are loaded onto your home computer, and configured for your needs. With your supervision, they can help create a safer surfing environment for your children - whether they're using the Web, chat rooms, instant messaging, email, file-sharing programs or any combination of these.

Browsers

Web browsers (such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer) are the software you use to access the Web. Tools built into your browser allow you take advantage of Internet rating systems to filter out inappropriate material.

Between them, Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer recognize four Internet ratings systems:

• ICRA (Internet Content Rating Association)
  
  
• RSACi (Recreational Software Advisory Council), which is gradually being replaced by the ICRA system
  
  
• ESRBi (Entertainment Software Rating Board)
  
  
• SafeSurf

Many Web sites voluntarily rate their content using one of these systems. You can view and adjust the ratings settings within your browser according to your tolerance for language, nudity, sex and violence. And because many Internet sites are not rated at all, these browsers also allow you to set the system to block unrated sites.

Netscape Navigator's built-in protection feature is called NetWatch. Once NetWatch is turned on, Netscape will read the rating on a Web page and compare it with the rating levels you've pre-selected as acceptable for your children. To activate this service, go to the Netscape Web site.

Microsoft Internet Explorer uses a system called Content Advisor to control access. To find out how to activate and use this system, click Help on your browser toolbar, click on Content and Index, and then search for Content Advisor in the Index.

Kid-friendly browsers

Kid-friendly browsers on the home computer enable parents to choose what sites kids can visit on the Net - and in some cases, even which programs they can access on the computer.

Most such browsers allow safe access to tools such as email, chat rooms, bulletin boards and instant messaging. Prices for these kinds of software vary: some are free, some require a one-time purchase price, and others charge a monthly subscription fee.

For information on the various kid-friendly browsers available, see the GetNetWise Web site (in the right sidebar).

Filtering and blocking software

Many different kinds of filtering and blocking software are available to parents to help them control Internet content, access and activities. Some of the most common functions they offer are:

• Blocking inappropriate content using key words, URLs, or a combination of both
  Some filtering software denies access to sites using certain keywords, which parents can usually customize. However, the drawback to keyword blocking is that the technology can't discriminate between genuinely unsuitable sites and innocent ones. Software programmed to avoid the keyword "smoking," for example, could also filter out educational anti-smoking sites, and even sites devoted to geology ("smoking volcanoes") or magic ("smoke and mirrors").
  
  Filtering software can also be programmed (by the software company, the parents, or both) to block access to specific Web sites that are deemed unsuitable. The list of these "forbidden sites" is updated regularly - though of course this is a major challenge, since there are currently millions of sites on the Web, and thousands of new ones launched each day.
  
  
• Blocking or controlling access to chat rooms, email, newsgroups and instant messaging (IM)
  Many programs allow parents to control their kids' access to Internet communication tools such as chat, email, IM and newsgroups. Parents can choose to block access to all areas, or allow access only to certain monitored environments. These programs can control email by deleting suspicious messages or those containing certain key words in the titles or  text of the message.
  
  
• Monitoring use of your computer, or the access your children have to the Internet
  Many tools allow parents to track computer use online: what sites are visited, and what activities (such as games) are engaged in, and for how long. This type of software also allows parents to control how much time, and when, their kids can use the computer.
  
  
• Preventing personal information from being transmitted from your computer
  Some of these programs can prevent kids from giving out certain information, such as their name, address or telephone number, over the Internet. The software can be programmed to recognize this data, so that if a child does type in personal information, all that appears is a row of x's or asterisks.