[cobalt-users] access control

[Gary Law <gary@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

> I am looking for a software package that will block sex sites for a
> church/school running on a Qube3. Price is a consideration. Any suggestions?

There is a internet access control application for the Qube available from
http://pkg.nl.cobalt.com/
called secure internet. I've no idea if it does what you want, but I guess 
it's worth trying. If you try it let me (or the group) know how you go as 
I'm looking for a package that can control bandwidth utilisation in the future.

In the UK many schools sign up with a schools only ISP which does the job 
of access control - very well - for them. If your not in the UK you might 
want to contact them for contacts in your country. 
http://www.rm.com/services/internet/

Be aware that many commercial desktop products that 'protect' users from 
undesirable sites may block useful ones (like local sites connected with 
Essex and Scunthorpe here in the UK) whilst missing porn sites (hotmale 
used to slip past quiet a few). Accidental browsing into porn sites is 
always possible, but for a legitimate user, unlikely.

In my experience there is no effective technical way of stopping people 
visiting sites that are considered unsuitable if they are determined. A 
better policy is to clearly tell people what is and is not acceptable, and 
check up on them. If they break the rules, ban them from using the PCs 
altogether. Many users are smart enough to cover their tracks by deleting 
their history file or cache. None I've come across has been smart enough to 
delete the cookies thou'. You can refine this solution depending on the 
platform (mac, NT, windows) using things like multi-user logins, browser 
administration kits and user policies.

Where the users are children there is no substitute for actual supervision 
of their use. Check out VNC, a free product, for Mac, PCs and Linux, from
http://www.uk.research.att.com/vnc/download.html
which will enable a virtual look over their shoulder.

Gary

PS In this office, there are no children, and we let people look at what 
they like.

--
Gary Law, Systems Administrator, Sportev Ltd
39 - 43 Brewer St, W1R 3FD  tel: +44 20 7734 3511 fax: +44 20 7287 0773
gary@xxxxxxxxxxx