Net Nanny Parental Controls Reviewer's Comments

New, improved and ready to watch over your children’s interaction with the Internet—Net Nanny 5.6 (formerly ContentProtect), powered by ContentWatch, receives the "TopTenREVIEWS Gold Award" for Internet filter software. This web-filtering program combines cutting-edge technology with non-technical settings and reports—perfect for informed, proactive parents who may not be computer or Internet savvy.

Net Nanny 5 emerged when ContentWatch, an industry leader in web filter technology and 4 year TopTenREVIEWS Gold award winner, acquired Net Nanny. ContentWatch pooled Dynamic Contextual Analysis, remote administration, an innovative, user-friendly interface and a trusted name into the best filtering product available on the market today.

If you’re a former Net Nanny user, you will notice a few features that aren’t included in the new 5.6 version. These features include email filtering and the ability to create a customized blocked list of applications.

In August 2004, the Walt Disney company chose ContentProtect as the Internet Filter to be used on the new Disney Dream Desk PC. Net Nanny has also received high ratings from PC Magazine.

If you are looking for solutions specifically for business or enterprise computers, there’s a more specialized approach from Net Nanny. ContentProtect Professional for businesses and ContentProtect Professional Appliance for Enterprise corporations are built specifically for your business needs. We have a separate review specifically for these products. Read our review here.

Feature Set:  

Standout features in the new Net Nanny include the remote management and remote reporting functions. ContentWatch was the only product to offer these convenient features and now they are available under the Net Nanny brand. The remote function allows you, as the administrator, to be anywhere in the world with a computer and Internet connection to access activity logs and make configuration changes. You can stay current on the Internet use in your home, while at work or on vacation.

Net Nanny uses Dynamic Contextual Analysis to filter web content. In other words, CNN.com might be blocked in the morning because of a very violent news story. However, an hour later, when the website content changes, the site will again be allowed. This software also has the option of a “warning” function as opposed to a “blocking” function. The user receives a warning of objectionable material, but then is permitted to proceed without interruption or restriction.

Net Nanny can instantly notify parents via email if children attempt to access objectionable material. Another practical feature is the ability to override blocked websites quickly with a password.

Ease of Use:  

This product is designed with people who are “technologically challenged” in mind. In fact, it starts working as soon as you’ve finished installation, making it perfect for the people who just want a simple setup without the need to tweak and modify.

For those of you who would prefer to personalize the settings more, there are plenty of options for customization. In the Administration Tools interface, there are well-labeled categories under two headings—User Settings and Family Settings. The Categories include Profile Settings, Time Controls, Reports and Email Notifications. The remote access interface is similar and just as easy to use.

Net Nanny might be a little frustrating for some people to use because it can slow down the surfing speed of your browser. You might notice a bit more of a delay when navigating sites as Net Nanny does its job though it might not be a problem for most users because it’s not a debilitating delay.

Another advantage of Net Nanny is that it’s useful for people who need Internet filtering on more than one computer. Net Nanny offers a subscription-based service with discounts for additional subscriptions. This makes it possible to protect multiple users for far less than most other products. This solution is also useful for small businesses or home offices that have multiple computers.

Ease of Installation:  

The download and installation were quick and easy. If you need to install the product on multiple computers, the software allows you to carry over customized settings to each of your computers thus saving time and creating consistency.

Filtering Effectiveness:  

We tested the software for overblocking (websites that should not have been blocked) and underblocking (websites that should have been blocked, but were not). The ideal Internet filter should have a nice balance between detecting sites that might go unnoticed as inappropriate and releasing sites that may have subjects or keywords that seem inappropriate at first, but are not.

Net Nanny works well because it doesn’t rely on a database of URLs; instead, Net Nanny analyzes websites in real-time as you surf the Internet. Net Nanny identifies page content that doesn’t meet your filtering criteria and then blocks the offending content. As we mentioned above, there is one drawback to this: page loading times are slowed a little by this process, but it’s not too noticeable and worth it if you want to filter sites.

Net Nanny passed our tests successfully but not perfectly. Frankly, Net Nanny performed better than almost all the competition. If anything, Net Nanny was a little overprotective. The program overblocked from time to time, but with the immediate override function, it wasn’t a big inconvenience. Most parents would rather err on the side of safety so the overblocking won’t be an issue for most people.

Very few instances of underblocking occurred, even with foreign language websites, which are notorious for confusing Internet Filter programs. We were pleasantly surprised because most Internet filtering programs have problems detecting pornography on foreign language websites. Even if you don’t visit foreign language sites often, Net Nanny will still provide good protection, regardless of language.

Net Nanny doesn’t stop with just websites; there are other problems out there. Net Nanny can detect and block other sources such as instant messaging programs and email accounts. There are many different settings that allow you to customize the level of filtering. This can help protect children from predators who might not rely on the pervasive chatrooms on the Internet.

The filtering can even go beyond specific content. You can also monitor and regulate the amount of time that your children spend in specific areas. If your child has a problem with spending too much time on Internet gaming sites, you can set time limits for individual users so that they each can only be on the Internet for a certain amount of time each day. This is a favorite for parents because their kids know that they will have to conserve some of their Internet time for homework and other important things. This function is nice because it doesn’t mean that you need to take away Internet privileges completely. And that’s the beauty of Internet filter software; it gives you options instead of ultimatums.

Summary:  

ContentWatch combined a well-known reliable name, Net Nanny, with the cutting edge technology of ContentProtect to create the ultimate Internet safety software. Simply put—the Internet can be a dangerous place and certainly contains unacceptable content. Children can be protected with filtering software and Net Nanny is the best.

If you are looking for ContentProtect Professional for businesses or ContentProtect Professional Appliance for Enterprise corporations, read our review here.