Webroot Parental Controls

- Star Review

Last Updated: 9/4/2009

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Webroot Parental Controls Star Rating

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It's a sad realization, but the fact of the matter is that the Internet isn't always a safe place to be. Parents who understand this know that parental control software plays an essential role in keeping kids safe online.

Webroot Child Safe is now known as Webroot Parental Controls.

Webroot's Parental Controls is one of the many Internet filtering software products we tested in our search for the best parental control software on the market. The findings of our research are detailed in the review below.

What's New with Webroot Parent Control Software?

Now compatible with Windows Vista
Price is now only $29.95 for use on up to 3 PCs. Get your $10 discount before it's to late!
Integrates with Windows to restrict access to Windows settings.

Star Reviews' Favorite Feature:
We really liked the fact that Parental Controls is one of the few parental Internet control products to allow parents to set limits on the amount of time a child can spend chatting or playing online games. The automatic log-off feature at bedtime is also a plus.

User Interface and Product Application:
Downloading and installing this parental Internet control software was relatively painless, although the barrage of configuration settings was a bit confusing at first. Once we got the software installed and running, it was very easy to use.

We were able to set up a restricted-sites list and restricted keyword settings in very little time and making changes to those settings was relatively simple. The parental control features allowed us to set limits on Internet activity time in 15-minute increments and we were also able to specify Internet hours allowed per week for each user.

In addition to limiting time, we were also able to limit the type of websites the parental control Internet filter would allow us to visit. There were 11 major categories with about 60 subcategories that we were able to prevent access to using the Internet filter.

We were also able to set up the parental control software so that it would email us when one of the users tried violating the restrictions we had defined. If a child tries visiting a restricted website, Parental Controls can tell them about it.

Another aspect of Parental Controls that really impressed us was that we could not get around the system's security. Two of our team members tried thwarting the parental Internet control settings and both failed. Unless a child is a computer genius and sophisticated hacker, they're not going to be able to get around the Parental Controls security.

Parental Controls Features:

Block specific websites or general website categories with Internet filtering.
Monitor Internet activity with detailed email reports.
Record all websites your child visits.
Manage the amount of time your child spends on the computer and the Web.
Limit the time spent in chat rooms.
Free support online and via telephone.
Prevent access to Windows settings.
Automatically log your child off the computer at bedtime.

Pricing: $39.95 for up to 3 PCs.

Customer Support:
Webroot offers customer support via a toll-free phone number, email and an online help database. The help database was quite extensive, addressing most questions the average user would run into. Phone support was also very helpful with barely any hold time at all. Email support, however, was not as easy to navigate.

Instead of having an email form or offering an email address to contact, there is a link that allows users to "submit a ticket". Once you click on this link, you can fill out a form requesting assistance. Once the form has been submitted, you can track the progress of your support request via the ticket number you are issued.

When we submitted our request via the online ticketing form, we received a ticket number via email within minutes. When we checked our ticket online at the WebRoot website, we saw that the support department had answered our question within 6 hours, but we were never notified that our question had been answered via email.

Upside:
Comprehensive parental Internet control features, competitive price, easy to use.

Downside:
The product does not offer real-time reporting of violations or problems, rather reports are sent on a scheduled basis.

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