Many computer users agree that the Internet is definitely one of the greatest innovations of our time, or even of all time.
Families and businesses alike are continuously finding new ways to intertwine the information superhighway into their daily routine, with the caveat that they now take the necessary steps to protect themselves and others (whether they're employees or loved ones) from the evils of offensive content or pornography.
For parents, using child-proofing services in filtering pornographic, controversial, violent, or distasteful content is par for the course of modern-day parenting.
Use of online resources to view non-work-related or non-curriculum-based material is also frowned upon because such actions can negatively impact a person's work or academic performance.
Whatever the case or scenario, an Internet filter is an effective way to add a powerful, additional layer of defense (arguably, a digital blockade) against the infiltration of unpleasant material, which gives employers, teachers, and parents an extra measure of control as well as further peace of mind in terms of what a worker, student, or child can or cannot watch.
To be more specific, an Internet filter gives the administrator of a network connection the ability to setup passwords, block websites, and manage the type of content that can be displayed.
The latest in Internet filter technology has now branched out to include powerful tools like chat room monitoring, popup blocking, and email filtering.
Each of these programs is specially developed to defend against and counteract the tactics of juvenile hacker delinquents, practical jokers, and particularly aggressive online porn sites.
There are presently many choices for Internet filtering products available, so researching the right kind of filter for you, your family, your students, or your employees can be bothersome and time-consuming.
Thankfully, there are easy-to-follow guidelines and criteria you can use to judge the quality of a given product.
For instance, get a free evaluation copy of the software you want to purchase and see for yourself if it's easy to use or not.
You can also test its effectiveness in filtering content by deliberately searching for objectionable material and checking out if its controls are impractically strict or not.
It is important in organizations to obtain compliance to have correct filtering in place.
With correct setup web filtering in place it is possible to have different policy on network segments.
I can allow for different group policies.
Example if a school there can be different group category policy for students and another policy for teachers.