One of the most frequently asked questions we get is: "Do I REALLY need software like this? It seems like..."
Anyone asking themselves questions like this should rest assured:
Yes. You need it.
No matter the age or the individual your considering monitoring, no matter how "good" they may be, no matter how "good" their
friends may be, kids and adults alike are exposed to various threats and temptations online. Internet activity monitoring software (sometimes called parental controls), is the only sane way to know what's going on and:
for parents to give kids some freedom to explore online
for adults to find out what their spouse or significant other may be up to
for employers to help ensure employees adhere to company guidlines (and aren't abusing company resources)
For many people using internet activity monitoring software isn't even about trusting the individuals
themselves in many cases so much as it is about
not trusting the creeps and other threats and temptations online. The concern of wanting others to feel like they're trusted must always be counterbalanced by the
very real need to keep those individuals you're monitoring--and yourself--safe.
We receive comments fairly regularly from users of our site thanking us for helping in the buying process and for helping them get a better sense of what's going on on their family computer.
Whatever you decide is right for you and your family, please, don't let youself fall into the trap of saying to yourself, "Well, it's not like..." because unless you have monitoring software keeping an eye on things when you can't, you don't know for sure. Revealing MySpace profiles, secret chats, encounters with online thugs and bullies... and this is just the beginning.
IMs (instant messages) for instance have a lingo and shorthand all their own. Have your ever seen that person type, "POS" or "WOS." They mean "Parent Over Shoulder" and "Wife Over Shoulder"
Without internet activity monitoring software you may never know they've even said this; with it, however, you'd know it was said, to whom it was sai,d and what was being said just beforehand that prompted the quick subject change.
The dangers of cyberspace cross age, ethnic, and social lines:
young kids may be stumbling upon sites with highly inappropriate content
spouses and individuals being unfaithful to their partner
tweens (or tweenies) may be being solicited for secret offline encounters
Whatever the case, internet monitoring software can shed light on these things help put you back in the driver's seat. The knowledge of these events and activities is what's key here. In our eyes its much like having good
antivirus software or using
Firefox. The *knowing* vs. the not knowing makes all the difference.
The best software we review here operates in a "stealth" or hidden mode; some software also offers the ability to turn this mode off and on. This stealth on/off feature is less important in our eyes than the "stealth" option itself.
If the software is you'll be able to decide for themselves in their family and if they want to notify their kids of the presence of the software.
A final thought...
We write the contents of this page in the hope that it will be taken seriously. We write it not to shock but to be honest, not to alarm but to inform.
Parental controls and internet activity monitors work. There's no reason not to use them.
