internet filters

Today our pastor was preaching out of Genesis 39, and he titled it "The Lost Virtus of Moral Purity". This afternoon I was talking to my mom about how I wish our pastor had mentioned internet filters in the sermon. He did say that "...some of you might need someone looking over your shoulder while you're on the internet..." I feel like it goes further than that. There is so much garbage on the internet that is easily accessible. There is also a lot of innocent stuff that could consume us if we let it or if it's something we struggle with. Lastly, there is the temptation to stay up late on the internet or be on the internet too much. For all of the above reasons and more, I recommend that every family have an internet filter. For several years, Jeremy and I have had an internet filter called Safe Eyes. For $50 a year, you can protect your family with this filter. It can be installed on 3 computers and works from home or wherever you are. They have been developing it and adding wonderful features to it. Safe Eyes automatically blocks anything po*nographic or anything with nu*ity. (I use the * to avoid someone finding this on an internet search of those things.) Now, here are some cool features:

*Website blocking
*Search engine key word blocking
*Time limits on internet usage- time of day and amount of time
*Usage logging
*Usage alerts via e-mail, text message, or phone call when inappropriate content is viewed- websites that aren't blocked by the administrator but are logged.
*Block certain categories like gambling or shopping.
*E-mail and social networking features.

You choose one person in the family to be the administrator. That person has a separate password that no one should know and sets up the above parameters for each individual user. Each individual user chooses a name and password and shouldn't share it with the other family members. This is used to log in each time you go onto the internet. If you were to share it, you could end up looking guilty of something you didn't do.
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Here is how the Safe Eyes website describes the filter:

Safe Eyes Is Effective

You can count on Safe Eyes to provide you with the most effective technology available for Internet filtering. Partnering with Secure Computing, Safe Eyes is the name to trust. In independent testing by the Department of Justice and the Kaiser Family Foundation, the Secure Computing technology utilized by Safe Eyes proved to be the most effective at blocking unwanted content. And top-rated filtering is only the beginning! Safe Eyes also allows you to: Control how much time is spent on the Internet (and what hours it is available) Record and list all websites that each user visits from the computer Send an alert when someone attempts to access objectionable content Control the types of programs your computer can access from the Internet Record (and limit) Instant Messenger chat sessions Block pop-up windows Once you've installed Safe Eyes on your computer, only you can remove it using your administrator password and uninstall code. Since no one else can remove the filter and there is no way to bypass it, you can trust that your family is protected whenever they use the Internet.

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I found Safe Eyes through James Dobson's website. Here is the page. I believe it is worth the $50 investment each year to keep my family safe. They're even offering a discount through this website. You can protect up to 3 computers for that $50 price.

Feel free to ask me any questions you have. I know I am happy having a filter. I will never have to worry about our children stumbling across garbage! That makes this mom happy!

If you don't prefer Safe Eyes as your filter, choose one that's right for you. Just remember that you will be protecting your family!