What do parental controls do?
These controls are designed to help you manage your child's online activities. Parental controls can set online time restrictions for your child and create content filters to manage the content they see. Parental controls can be used across your broadband, Wi-Fi, apps, games consoles and personal devices including mobile phones and tablets. There are various types, some of which are free but others which can be bought.
However, nothing is totally fool proof so they shouldn't replace the need for you to support and advise your child on online safety.
How can I use parental controls?
Accessing device controls can vary according to the manufacturer. Controls can offer differ types of protection. From filtering out adult content in search results, to preventing your child from buying things when playing games. You can find instructions on how to set controls on the manufacturer's website or to find specific guidance for your device, network or platform use this online tool from Internet Matters.
Control settings will apply whether the device is being used in your home or outside. It's also easy for controls to be switched off, so make sure your child understands why the settings are in place.
What are some examples of parental controls?
Most games consoles come with settings, which can be put in place for either the device itself or the games platform. It's easy to forget that games consoles allow players to connect to the internet and talk to people all over the world, So setting controls on devices and on the platform itself is important.
Broadband and network
Broadband and network controls can be used to prevent inappropriate material from being accessed. For example, restricting anything with a horror or sexual content from being accessible via your home broadband. Instructions for accessing these filters can be found on the service provider's websites. Look at the bottom of the page to find the "help" or "security" page.
Search engines such as Google allow users to filter out certain types of search results. This means you can reduce the risk of your child seeing adult content like pornography, or set limits on the time they spend online. Look for the cogwheel “settings” symbol where you will find the options for each provider. You can also encourage your child to use safer search facilities, such as SafeSearch Kids from Google.
Social media and other websites
As with search engines, social media and sites like YouTube have privacy and security settings. These can prevent your child from being contacted by strangers or from seeing inappropriate material. It is important to remember that content filters can't prevent other people from sending offensive or inappropriate messages or comments to your child's account. So controlling who can contact your child is a key step.
It is also possible to buy filter programmes. These can be either solely for filtering purposes, but some virus protection software also offer filtering options.