Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 4: Using a web monitoring program
• Method 2 of 4: Using OpenDNS to secure your entire network
• Method 3 of 4: Using Windows Family Safety
• Method 4 of 4: Modifying the hosts file

The internet can be a scary and dangerous place, especially for children. As a parent, there are a variety of tools available to you to monitor your child's internet usage. Using these tools can significantly reduce the child's chances of encountering dangerous people or offensive content. Follow this guide to start monitoring your family's online behavior the easy way.

To step

Method 1 of 4: Using a web monitoring program

1. Purchase a web monitoring program. A web monitoring program allows you to block a group of websites and specific web addresses. These programs usually allow you to set different protection levels for different users, giving you more control over who can view what within the family. Popular programs include:
   • Just Nanny
   • Norton Family
   • K9 Web Protection
   • Qustodio
2. Install the program on any computer. Most surveillance programs will require you to pay or sign up to use them. You need a license for every computer you want to protect. When you purchase a web filter online, you will receive links where you can download the program.
   • In general, these programs should be installed on any computer you want to protect.
3. Indicate which content you want to block. Most programs provide a list of categories that you may or may not check to determine what you may or may not want to pass through. You can also indicate specific sites that should not be accessible, or that you want to be accessible.
   • You will have to set these filters on every computer you install the software on.
   • Filters are constantly being updated by the companies that make these programs. Many use automated systems that search for new pages and block them automatically, even if the website is not yet in the database.
4. Set the hours that the desired content can be available. For some programs you can indicate specific times that content can be consulted. For example, you can turn off access to social networks during homework hours so that kids don't waste their time on Facebook instead of studying.
5. Monitor online behavior. Most programs create logs and notifications that show when inappropriate content tries to be accessed. Some programs even allow you to view your child's Facebook profile and all of their photos and messages.

Method 2 of 4: Using OpenDNS to secure your entire network

1. Sign up for OpenDNS. OpenDNS is free for home use, and a more powerful version is available to businesses for a fee. OpenDNS is installed on the router of your network and affects all network traffic. This means that websites are blocked on all devices connected to the router, including computers, tablets, game consoles and mobile phones.
   • OpenDNS blocks sites on any device, so it may not be of much use to parents who want to access blocked websites when the kids are not around.
2. Open your router's configuration page. Most routers can be accessed by entering 192.168.1.1 or 192.168.0.1 in the address bar of a web browser on a device connected to the network. You may then be asked for your username and password.
   • The router's login address and default username and password will vary by manufacturer. If you don't have access to your router, check the default settings at RouterPasswords.com.
   • If you still cannot access your router due to a forgotten username or password, press the reset button on the router to reset it to factory settings. This will erase all network settings at the same time, including settings for the wireless network.
3. Find your DNS settings. This is usually located in the b> internet / b> section of the router. Look for b> DNS / b> accompanied by two or three fields where you can enter the IP addresses.There are two options for most default settings, although the exact wording may be different: “Get Automatically from ISP” and “Use These DNS Servers”. Select “Use These DNS Servers” to enter the OpenDNS server details.
4. Enter your DNS information. In the Primary and Secondary DNS fields, enter the following addresses:
   • 208.67.222.222
   • 208.67.220.220
5. Click Apply Changes or Save. Once the settings have been updated, it is important to refresh the DNS on every computer that is connected to the network. That way you can be sure that your new settings take effect immediately.
6. Enable dynamic IP updates. Chances are that your internet connection at home will be assigned a dynamic IP address by your internet service provider. This means that your IP address will change from time to time. OpenDNS must be configured to update the settings when your IP address is changed, otherwise the filtering will not work.
   • Log in to the Dashboard of your OpenDNS with the username and password you received when you signed up.
   • Select your network in the Home or Settings tab. Click on Advanced Settings and go to the Dynamic IP Update section. Make sure the box labeled is checked, then click Apply to save your settings.
   • Download a dynamic IP from the OpenDNS Updater program. This program must be installed on a computer that your children cannot access so that it cannot be turned off. Ideally, this computer will always be on or on before other computers connect.
7. Set your filters. Once you have configured OpenDNS you are ready to set up your filters. These filters block websites that meet certain criteria, such as pornography, exam fraud, social media, etc. You can filter out categories, set general layers of protection, block certain websites, or allow only specific websites.
   • Log in to the OpenDNS Dashboard. Select the network for which you want to adjust the filters. Click on the Web Content Filtering link.
   • Choose the level of the filter. You can choose from three layers of filtering: low, medium and high. OpenDNS will provide examples of what is being filtered at each level.
   • Set a custom filter. If you would like to indicate which filters you want to activate, click on the Custom option and tick each box that you want to activate. For example, check
   • Add domains to your black or white list. In the section for managing individual domains, you can add domains that you either always want to block or always allow, regardless of the settings of the filters. For example, you can turn on the Social Networking filter, but add “twitter.com” to the list of sites (Always Allowed) that must always be allowed for Twitter to be used.
8. Monitor which sites are being viewed. Once you have activated the filters, you can monitor the use of the internet in your network to see if people are going to try to visit sites that are not intended. To do this, you will first need to make sure that Stat Logging is enabled. Log in to the Dashboard and click on the Settings tab. Check the box to enable statistics and logs (“Enable stats and logs”) and click Apply.
   • Click on the Stats tab to view a log of your network. You can use the left menu to see which websites are visited and when. This way you can find out if your children are trying to access websites where they have no business.

Method 3 of 4: Using Windows Family Safety

1. Install the Family Safety Filter on any computer. The Family Safety Filter must be installed on every computer in your home that the child has access to. The Family Safety Filter is automatically installed on Windows 8, but may need to be downloaded for Windows 7. Earlier versions of Windows (XP, Vista, etc.) and other operating systems do not support it.
2. Enable Family Safety on Windows 7. Open Family Safety and log in with your Microsoft Account. You need a Microsoft Account to use Family Safety. When you log in for the first time, you create the primary parent account. This will be the administrator account for Family Safety, and the account that can change the settings from the Family Safety website.
   • If you want to install Family Safety on multiple computers, sign in with the Microsoft Account you used in the first place.
   • Check the box next to each account you want to check. Family Safety works best when each family member has their own account and all accounts are password protected. This is important because if someone switches to an account that is not protected by Family Safety, they will be able to access blocked content.
   • Disable guest accounts as children can access blocked content by logging into the guest account. If you want to disable a guest account, search for "user accounts" using the Windows search function and select it from the results. Click Manage User Accounts and then click Guest. Click on "Disable guest account".
   • Check your settings. Once you've selected which accounts you want to monitor, you'll get a summary of all the accounts you've selected, as well as a link to the Family Safety website.
3. Activate Family Safety on Windows 8. Family Safety is automatically turned on for all child accounts you create in Windows 8, as long as your administrator account is signed in with a Microsoft account. You can also enable Family Safety on standard accounts.
   • To enable Family Safety on an existing account, open Settings and click Change PC Settings. Open Accounts and then click Other Accounts. Select the account you want to enable for Family Safety and click Edit. Change the "Account Type" to Child.
   • Make sure all accounts are password protected so that a child cannot log in to another account to access blocked content.
4. Log in to the Family Safety website. Once you have enabled Family Safety on all accounts, you can adjust the settings for each user through the Family Safety website. Sign in with the primary Microsoft Account.
5. Select a user to edit. Once you are logged in, you will be presented with a list of all users you have enabled Family Safety for. Select a user and you'll see options to filter websites, create activity reports, set time limits, grant access when prompted, and set game and app restrictions.
   • Filtering web content - In this section you can set the filter level for the user. Different levels let different types of websites through, with the strongest filter at the top. You can choose to allow only specific sites, block all sites except those suitable for children, allow all general websites, allow social networks, or block nothing at all.
   • List of web filter items - In this section you can designate specific sites that you always want to allow or always block.
   • Activity reporting - You can set the level of activity reporting for this account. This allows you to choose to what extent web browsing is tracked.
   • To request - You can allow users to request to access blocked sites. You will then receive these requests and you can choose whether or not to allow them.
   • Time limits - Sets specific times when the user can interact with the PC. When this period has passed, the user will be logged out of the computer.
   • Game and App restrictions - In this section you can indicate specific games and apps installed on your computer that you do not want the user to access. This is useful if you have adult games installed that you don't want your kids to play with.

Method 4 of 4: Modifying the hosts file

1. Edit the hosts file in Windows. The hosts file allows you to block access to websites on the computer you are using. It works for all accounts on that computer. Modifying a host file will block a website, but does not provide additional options, such as tracking browsing habits or time limits. Technical users may be able to modify the host file and bypass the block.
   • Go to C: Windows System32 drivers etc and double click on it. When prompted to choose a program, use the Notepad to open the file.
   • Place your cursor at the bottom of the document. Create an empty line between your starting point and the end of the existing text.
   • Enter 127.0.0.1 website> and press Enter. Replace website> with the website you want to block (facebook.com, youtube.com, etc.).
   • Enter another line with the same information except that you enter “www.” Here. before the name of the website. Essentially, you now have two listings per website that you want to block: 127.0.0.1 facebook.com AND 127.0.0.1 www.facebook.com.
   • Repeat this for every website you want to block.
   • Save the file. Do not change the name, file type or location of the file. Just save the changes you made. You may need to restart your browser for the changes to take effect.
2. Edit the hosts file on a Mac. The hosts file allows you to block websites on the computer you are using. It works for all accounts on that computer.
   • Launch the Terminal, which can be found in the Utilities folder.
   • Backup the hosts file by entering the following command and pressing Enter: sudo / bin / cp / etc / hosts / etc / hosts-original. You may need to enter your administrator password.
   • Edit the hosts file. To edit the hosts file you will need to open it in Nano with the following command: sudo nano / etc / hosts /. This will open the Nano window and display the text of the hosts file.
   • Start on a new line at the bottom of the file. Type 127.0.0.1 website> and hit Enter. Replace website> with the website you want to block (facebook.com, youtube.com, etc.).
   • Type another line with the same information, except that this time you enter “www.” before the website name. Essentially, you now have two listings per website that you want to block: 127.0.0.1 facebook.com AND 127.0.0.1 www.facebook.com.
   • Repeat this procedure for every website you want to block.
   • Save your changes by pressing Ctrl + O. Once the changes have been saved, press Ctrl + X to exit Nano.
   • Empty the DNS. Use the command sudo dscacheutil –flush cache to flush the DNS and reset your DNS and load the new settings. Your browser should now block the websites you specified in the hosts file.
3. Repeat these steps on any computer you want to protect. The disadvantage of the hosts file method is that this file will have to be modified on every computer you want to protect. If there are many computers connected to your network, this may not be feasible.