Internet Safety and Pornography Filtering

If you're one of the many parents in the world who have internet access, children, and a looming concern over internet safety in the face of pervasive Internet pornography and other harmful content, you're not alone. Parents face this challenge every day and have to be increasingly alert as the methods used by pornographers to get harmful content into the home become more targeted and crafty.

Since the Internet became a common medium for content in the home, parents have worried about this problem, and since that time, many have hailed Internet filters as the cure. It has become quickly apparent (based on teen usage statistics and the prevalence of so many solutions) that Internet filters are not doing the job. Yet too often, parents rely on Internet filters to do the job of parenting when they can't be around.

The barrier to pornography is you, not an internet filter. If you want to block porn, you should have a plan in place long before you get an actual filter. Your children should have rules that determine Internet usage, including frequency of access, time of day, appropriate sites, in addition to rules for chatting, surfing, etc. You should always supervise young childrens' internet usage and have the computer in a centralized place in the home.