MaxProtect Reviewer's Comments

MaxProtect is one of the most comprehensive Internet filter software in this review and ranks among the best. This one suite offers Internet filtering, desktop filtering and gives the administrator control over the applications and time spent on the computer.

The only downside to this product is it only filters through keyword and URL blacklists. We found the software to overblock and underblock on occasion.

Feature Set:  

MaxProtect covers all aspects of your computer and is a tool that will protect children and give parents a peace of mind. Some of the noteworthy features include an easy-to-use time control function and a function that allows the administrator to block certain applications. Both are easy to setup and can be customized for each user.

In the administrator controls, you can add or remove websites and keywords from the blacklist and access reports. The reports include Chat View, Site View and Capture View. The capture view actually records screenshots when a forbidden page is accessed.

Ease of Use:  

The control panel is easy-to-use and organized into well-labeled tabs. If you have questions, you can contact support by email and telephone. There is also a help section full of good information.

Ease of Installation:  

The software was easy to install and setup—we didn’t run into any problems. However, we were disappointed with our overall experience obtaining the software. We called and sent emails, because we couldn’t find the advertised trial version. We finally purchased the software, but still didn’t receive the download. The Order Inquiries phone number was disconnected. After finally speaking to someone and sending another email, we got the download.

Filtering Effectiveness:  

MaxProtect immediately recognized blacklisted keywords, gives a warning and shuts down the application being used. For example, we couldn’t even type the word “playboy” into a search and had to disable the filter to write this review. We were impressed.

The software was able to differentiate between keywords like “breast” and “chicken breast” and display relevant information. However, we could still access nude pictures by searching for “breast” and choosing non-pornographic websites. Furthermore, we could also access some adult oriented dating sites by carefully choosing our keywords.

We tested some known foreign pornographic websites and MaxProtect blocked every site we tried to access.

We did feel the filter overblocked on occasion. In other words, it based the filtering on keywords, not on content. For example, we went to CNN.com and searched for news stories about “Playboy” and it blocked all of our searches.

Summary:  

Overall, we are impressed with MaxProtect and the various protective features it offers. Though it doesn’t have the same quality of filtering as some of the higher ranking filters, this web filter does a good job.