The Internet reflects the culture we live in. There are countless pages on the Web with fun, exciting, informative, and educational content, but there are also lots of sites that you may find inappropriate for you and your family. To help keep from stumbling onto offensive sites, several companies sell content-filtering products that will block access to sites based on different criteria (such as known "blacklisted" sites, or by analyzing the words found on a page to determine whether that page is likely to be inappropriate or not, based on settings you specify.)

 How can I protect my children while they are online?

• Realize that content-filtering software is not perfect. New web pages are created every day, and even the best filtering software cannot block 100% of offensive sights. Don't let filtering software be a substitue for personal vigilance and monitoring.
• Purchase and install a content-filtering program. Many products are available, such as:
  • Bsafe
  • Cybersitter
  • Cyber Patrol
  • NetNanny
  • SurfControl
  • S4F
• Visit GetNetWise, where you'll find tips for both parents and children on how to surf the web wisely, along with information on how you can protect yourself and your family.