Keeping our kids safe online and keeping an eye on everything they are doing is something that is obviously a major challenge for parents today. I myself have 5 children in my family and enough devices to ensure that each of them could be connected online at any one time. Between the xbox, an ipod touch, an iPhone, a laptop, computer or ipad, all these devices have the ability to connect to our home wifi and hence have the ability to expose our kids to all manner of content online. To keep an eye on every one of them every moment they are online, is something that is simply not possible.
I started looking for some software and security that would at least ensure that whilst my kids were at home I could be confident in knowing that they were not being exposed to anything that wasn’t fit for their eyes. Unfortunately nothing was available that would cover all our home devices, including the mobile ones and it instead requiring a number of different systems, softwares and downloads to put in place to ensure every device was covered.
I don’t usually endorse many products on my blog, but this one is one that is not only clearly relevant but it is one I am really excited about, and goes a long way to helping keep our kids safe online. It is one that ticked all the boxes and more.
Cybersafe 24/7 is basically a wifi modem that has replaced our old internet modem. What I can now do is see every single website that has been visited by every single device in my household. I know when it was visited and for how long and by whom.
Here are just some of the things I can now do from my administration page:
- See every website visited by household or narrow it down to each individual device. For example I can see exactly what has been looked at on “Ollie’s Ipad” or on “Mums laptop” or on “Charlies iPod” or the xbox or Wii. Not only does this help us know what our kids are looking at but it helps us bring up important discussions that may need to happen about what our kids are searching for online.
- I can block all sorts of information from ever being seen by any device in the household or I can block it from each individual device. For example I have set up a profile that I have called ‘kids profile”. On this profile I have applied it to all the kids devices and now means they cannot view anything online that contains pornography, adult entertainment, gambling, dating sites, drugs, cigarette and alcohol and basically anything I don’t want them to see or access. It can easily be changed and altered at anytime.
- I can block the use of social media or (shopping for me) from any or all of the devices but I can also allow them to be used for certain periods during the day. This is one of the greatest ways to help parents keep their kids off Facebook and the like when they say they are doing work. I can determine the hours that any site is allowed. Any time outside those hour,s the site is simply blocked.
Whilst this does not replace the teaching of skills to engage in the online world safely, it does give us peace of mind about what is being viewed. Once something is seen it can’t be unseen and this is one of the most distressing things for any parent when they realize what their kids have been exposed to. Alarmingly the average age that children view pornography online is eleven. And for the majority of kids it actually happens at home on their home computers and devices.
I am openly endorsing this product as I have been using it for over a month and I am so impressed. No it doesn’t help our kids when they are at friends or out in the world, but it certainly gives me peace of mind that they are safely enjoying the online world when they are at home.
This product retails for $249 which is about the price of any wifi modem that you would buy that does nothing else but connect you online. If you want more information click on the banner ad to be directed to their website.
If you mention The Modern Parent they will happily give you a 30 day free trial!
Competition closes Monday 20th August 5pm . Only open to Australian residents.
This Post Has 62 Comments
I get really worried about all the horrible freaky stuff that is online now, stuff that we had no idea about when we were kids and there was no internet!
My children are both under 4, so my biggest worries at the moment are of them deleting my emails, or downloading apps on my iPhone, although I can’t imagine how that is going to change as they grow up and as the internet becomes more “dangerous”, it truly is scary to think what they could see, who they could meet, or what they could do…
Violence towards all animals and property, and how it might lead to behavioural issues later in life.
My kids are 16 and 13, they spent a lot of time on the computer, internet, for school, so, I am concerned about the kinds of people that are also on the internet maybe impersonating other children. The computer my kids are using is always in the family room so we can keep an eye on what they are doing.
I can’t even begin to list the things I’m afraid my children will see on the internet. So far my eldest only has limited use and only when someone is with her, (mainly for learn to read sites) but it won’t be long before she is going to need access to more and if we aren’t there all of the time, who knows what she could be exposed to 🙁
What a fabulous product! I’m not sure that we’re there just yet but it’s great to know something is out there for when we need it.
What a great product! I think what worries me most is that people can pretend to be kids and gain the trust of our children without us even knowing. It’s very important to know what our kids are looking at on the Internet and for them to be able to ask questions when they need to. Online bullying is a huge issue, and one we never had to deal with when we were young. It’s a scary cyberspace world!
What a great aid to use when trying to keep our kids safe.
I’m worried about my teenage son growing up with an unrealistic view of women. I would love this product as it would certainly give me peace of mind!
I don’t want my little boy to see boobies on the internet.
I’m another worried about the effect all the unrealistic portrayals of women are having on my kids … not just my sons, but my teenage daughter who thinks she must be hair-free , skinny and made-up all the time.
It is a scary place – and cyber bullying is menacing – both the subtle and un-subtle digs that are given on facebook, skype, etc
It is so hard to teach our teens to have a care for their cyber profile/reputation. They just don’t care/believe (?) that what they post is sooo public – they still think it is private !
My daughter is about to go to high school next year and the constant nag to let her have facebook has begun! What scares me the most is the bullying factor that comes with kids and social media … that’s going to be a tricky one to monitor. I can teach my daughter all the do’s and don’ts, but sadly some parents don’t and that’s when things start to fail a little.
It’s a scary world out there and the kids are more often than not going to be one step ahead of most parents on these things. This product sounds fantastic especially as today I’ve just gone to search something on the internet through my phone and discovered that someone has been searching ‘sexy girl boobs’! I hate to think where they have been taken and what they have seen!!!
If my son is sent an explicit photo from a girlfriend his own age (child/teenager) in an attempt to flirt with him. Technically without me knowing it, as the owner of the computer, I may be in possession of child pornography and could be jailed. This really scares me!
Fake, nasty profiles on the internet. There to befriend, on the sly sucking them in, only to result in a painful end. And not just when they’re kids, when they grow up too. This sort of nonsense is rampant online.
That they believe everything the see and read online. There’s so much nonsense out there and I don’t want them growing up thinking it’s gospel, neglecting reliable and true resources.
I’m a young mum and the issues of the online world don’t seem to worry me as much as some parents out there. I believe that kids will be kids and the more you try to stop them, the more they are going to do something.
The main issue that arises from online access is cyber bullying. There are so many ways to belittle other people online and that’s always a worry. There’s no ‘safe haven’ at home away from the bullies because they are there on your computer.
As for fake profiles and the like; we as parents need to teach our kids the right way and entrust that they will do the right thing.
i shudder to think whats going to be banned on the net when my kids grow up!!
what a brilliant idea. i am always spying on what my kids are up to – not cause I am being nosy but because I am terrified of them stumbling across things they shouldnt or people trying to contact them. I even banned Moshi Monsters after my 6 year old was threatened online. Freaky place that cyberspace. xx
Martine this sounds incredible!
What scares me, is that even with education, they can still accidently stumble upon the wrong thing. The other day I was looking for costume ideas for book week, and the outfits that google showed me, were not appropriate at all!
If you can’t google ‘little red riding hood’ safely, then what can you google?
What scares me most is my 2 kids know far more about how these things work than I do! This sound like a fantastic product! For my kids (12 & 15) the fact that they would know I can see what they have looked at and for how long would be the thing that would put them off looking at anything out of curiosity!
Sounds a very handy device. I do find it hard to monitor all four kids, worry about the kids seeing terrible violence as well as porn. And also I worry about missing out on other activities, fresh air etc… but they are pretty active, luckily, and I can be a truly mean mother, so they say, when I switch everything OFF!
the people out there trying to seduce our children by pretending to be teenagers themselves…
Wow – What a fantastic product! I love that you can check up on all the different devices. I guess I worry about the kids accessing things that would be illegal or unsafe to themselves and others. I worry less about porn because I think it is quite normal to be curious. I don’t think we should monitor to stop natural curiosity but if you know your child is looking up small bomb making plans you can make an informed parenting decision. (I remember a kid at school who was permanently scarred after building a small bomb for the fun of it!)
Shared this product because it is a great product and good to keep your growing children safe!
I’m really concerned that with one click of a button they could see some really disturbing things and you can’t monitor them 24/7.
All those stories you hear from the news about online predators and other nasties like hackers and viruses, I want to play online and feel completely safe!
I have already experienced the wrath of the internet. My son used his iPod to browse explicit content and attempted to throw a party on Facebook. What scares me the most is the kids talking to people they don’t know. I have banned my daughter talking to people online while on the Playstation 3. Danger is everywhere. I’m afraid that my kids will get assaulted or even kidnapped. The internet has made me a very wary person.
Having a Down Sydrome grand daughter that love’s getting into everything, this would be very handy, she love’s getting on my laptop and has delete quiet a few things the little bugger. So this would be GREAT.
My son loves youtube to watch Thomas the tank engine and “Cars” but I’m scared he’ll click a link accidentally which will take him to some adult video that is inappropriate for his age.
What scares me most is how they know how to do things on the internet that I haven’t taught them, I’m not sure what they are capable of finding!!!
I get worried about them learning things that they shouldn’t know at a young age, would rather they have the chance to be kids, not have their minds engulfed in adult content too early
My kids not having he strength to combat online bullying.. its great we have something that takes care of the rest now we need to focus on what that brilliant little invention can’t do!
Cyber bullying scares me-there is no pull back on it-ppl can be very cruel behind a keyboard:-(
Wow! What a marvellous device! I never knew anything like this existed! My 3 kids are all under the age of 6, so wouldnt be intentionally looking for anything ‘not allowed’ but things just pop up… for example, my daughter searched for Dora the Explorer recently and my son Thomas the Tank, they were watching you-tube clips, when i heard my Daughters Dora, swearing explicitly, it was a ‘gothic’ dora of sorts and they’d editted one of her favourite episodes! Similar with a Thomas music song! That is what worries me. I want my kids to remain as innocent as they can for as long as I can! They have enough bad language and advertisements in the real world, let alone when they are trying to just watch a Dora video clip!
Great idea!
I can’t possibly side by my kids side all the time, I don’t want to deny them the knowledge they can gain, but with so many creeps lurking I am so conflicted at what to do. I think this device can be my safety net, my baby sitter and my guard dog all in one.
My hubby develops software and knows so much bout computers, I on the other hand know not much and thought he too security way too far. I am amazed about what kids can get into so easily and didnt realise about cyber bullying until a teen at my sons school killed herself. This device would be amazing 🙂
all the random adds on FB, people who do not personally know my child, i block most of these but there are always ways around things, so a modem like this would make me feel safer about who we “Let into our homes” via internet
it is worrying with the many predators of children on cyberspace. Impersonators of children, those that can do harm to our so vulnerable young.
It is also very worrying that if your child is a victim of bullying, that this can be blown out of proportion through social media sites which allow friends of friends and enemies of enemies to see comments that have harmed a person’s self esteem to the point of them possibly harming themselves.
These young are our future so to protect them from these things that can harm them for life is obviously a priority.
There is so much out there our kids could stumble upon that troubles me. Even on facebook, plus people we don’t know reaching out to them really scares me. It can all happen so quickly. You could be on any site and an innapropriate advertisement pops up!!
So many things to worry about-unacceptable sites, cyber bullying, cyber predators and kids competition sites that ambush them into creating large internet bills (like the one we had to wear 2 months ago)
I watch my kids closely while the are on the net, but I can’t be there every second. It would be good to know someone else is watching too.
Fantastic device! What I find scary is knowing how to moniter their use and what sites apps they’re using. With teenage stepchildren I can only moniter them on our time, my partner is not at all tech savvy and he was floored when I recently showed him “photos & posts” from his teenage daughter.
I have recently caught my 14yo stepson viewing/ engaging in inappropriate online behaviour. I do not think I’m a fuddy duddy and i’m no prude; but some things are just damn scary! I want him to grow up to be the gentleman his father is and have realistic views of women and the world.
knowing that there are some very sly people on there ready 2 prey
The personal information that they leak,
Just needs a preying freak!
Need to teach what is right,
Without a teen fight!
I don’t get scared so much about what my children can get into on the internet – I can control that. I get scared about what others can put on the internet about my children. There is nothing stopping thermcreating a profile pretending to be my children, or writing nasty things about them. There is no stopping or controlling that which is the scary thing!!
I have already had to password protect my computer from my 7 year old who went online to look up guns because kids at school were talking about them, holy moley it freaked me out! I shudder to think what the future will hold or what he or my youngest may look up in the future.
Their vunerability…easy to manipulate info out of etc!
it scares me that there are many predators out there and I no longer trust my judgement of people so how can children judge and trust
I worry about cyber bullying and the inappropriate content that is so easily accessible by everyone.
I am worried they will see something that would entice them into something bad, or scare them and change their behavior on how they view things within the world. I call it the Worrying Wide Web
They don’t understand the dangers of cyber-bullying, nor do children understand that adults pretend to be other chidren to lure them into dangerous situations. I’ve even seen adults put their address on FB to complete strangers wanting to purchase something (should hve done it in a PM)- so you can imagine what information innocent children give out.
Like all such devices they are not tweenproof or teenproof and for the cost just not woth the investment. $50 can buy a desktop application and not have to buy a router. No mention of how many devices you can hook up either. Is this a single port router? Is the multi-port going to set you back another $100? Please if you are going to do a technology review make sure it’s an honest one and also tell us if that’s an affiliate link or not. Sorry to be a little scathing but if we modern parents (or those of grandparent age like myself) are going to learn something from this then we need to know enough to be able to make an informed choice.
Should say I like what your doing on this site so I don’t confuse people that I’m some sort of troll. Ironically I was lead here by a promotion called The Great Aussie Give Away. I enjoy a well written blog and a well laid out site 🙂
Thanks for your comment Dennis. Firstly I do very limited reviews on my blog as they need to be both relevant and something I completely believe in to make parenting easier. This device certainly ticked those boxes for me. You say it is not teen proof but I who have been using it for some time now have found it completely teen, tween and even adult proof. I searched extensively for a device that would cover all devices in my household and found no other. This particular modem covers every device in my house including the Wii, the Xbox, the iPod touches, iPads, the desktop PC and the apple Mac laptops. There is no limit to the amount of devices, it is whatever ones are using the internet in your home at anytime. I needed to buy no other devices, attachments or anything whatsoever. I simply replaced my old wireless modem that did nothing but connect me to the internet with this wireless modem that does that and so much more. This is a completely honest review and I am unsure where you get the impression that it isn’t. I am not talking from a technical gurus perspective here, I am reviewing from the position of a concerned parent as well as a counsellor of many youth and families that have struggled to monitor and regulate their children’s online activities. I have been using it for some time and I am 100% satisfied that it does everything I have stated it would. And yes I was so impressed with it that I did ask if I could set up an affiliate link on my blog as I truly believe many of my readers could benefit from this product. I would never jeopardise the trust of my readers as they are what my blog and business are all about.
I’m really worried about how much information there is to find. I’d rather he learn his life lessons from people close to him than weirdos on the internet!
Violence and Cruelty, which includes a vast array of subject matter, depicted on line is very worrying.
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Brilliant! Now that i know my kids will be safe whenever they get online i can sleep in piece. I only have to worry about the “but my friends can do it at their place!” and how im going to answer that one! Great website by the way!
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Hey! Would you mind if I share your blog with my facebook group?
There’s a lot of folks that I think would really appreciate your content. Please let me know. Many thanks
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