McAfee Family Protection 2.0

Some parental control utilities are entirely local to the protected computer, with no remote access or configuration. Others keep all configuration and logs entirely online, relying on a small, local client to enforce the rules on each protected PC. McAfee Family Protection 2.0 ($49.95 direct for three licenses) falls right in the middle. It includes a full configuration utility on each protected PC, but you can access an identical configuration console online.

McAfee partnered with InternetSafety.com in 2009 and acquired the company in 2010. McAfee Family Safety is a re-branded version of InternetSafety's Safe Eyes 6.0 ($49.95 direct, 4 stars), and feature-wise it's almost identical.

Quick Install
After the quick, simple install, McAfee launches into a setup wizard that helps you with initial configuration. The first step is to create a McAfee online account, if you don't already have one. Next you'll define a username and password for each child. Usernames must be globally unique among all users of the product, so you won't be able to use Jason or Jennifer as a username. Get creative, then click the button to see if your choice is available.

The product automatically pre-configures default settings based on the age range you select. You can opt instead to copy settings from another user that you've already configured.

The next page summarizes protection settings in eight categories. Some are simply on or off, while others offer choices like low, medium, and high. You can customize settings on this page, but you're better off waiting until you can use McAfee's full-powered user interface. Once you repeat this process for each child, up to a maximum of ten, McAfee is ready to start.

Child Accounts
If all of your children use the same Windows account, they'll have to log in to McAfee each time they start and log out when another child takes a turn. Things are much simpler if each child has a Windows account. You log in for them one time with the username and password you created earlier and check the box to remember these credentials. Thereafter login will be automatic.

McAfee can be installed on up to three computers. By matching the child's McAfee account to the proper user account on each computer, you ensure the correct configuration in every location.

Upon logging in to the Administrator account you'll see a handy grid-style summary, with usernames across the top and 11 protection categories down the site. Clicking on any settings lets you make broad changes such as turning a feature on and off or changing its level from medium to high. Parents can also log in to a near-identical configuration screen online.

Web Content Filtering
For each child you can set website protection to high, medium, low, or custom. Choosing custom opens the Websites tab. Here you can pick and choose among the 35 available categories, whitelist or blacklist specific sites, and control whether McAfee forces safe search at popular search portals.

McAfee's content filtering is browser independent, so the kids won't evade it by finding an off-brand browser. Like Net Nanny 6.5 ($39.99 direct, 4.5 stars), WebWatcher ($169.95 direct, 4 stars), and Qustodio (Free, 3 stars) it can filter HTTPS traffic.

Filtering secure traffic is an unusual ability. Parental control tools that lack this ability can be effectively disabled by a teen using a secure anonymizing proxy. AVG Family Safety ($19.95 direct for three licenses, 4.5 stars) and Bsecure Online v6.16 ($49.95 direct for three licenses, 4.5 stars) are among the products that can't filter HTTPS traffic.

Qustodio is one of the few standalone parental control tools that can be disabled by a simple three-word network command. This weakness is more common in parental control systems bundled as part of a suite. Surprisingly, McAfee is also vulnerable. A child whose Windows account has Administrator privilege can disable McAfee's protection. Yes, it pops up a warning after reboot begging piteously to have its service turned back on? but the child can just click Ignore.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/xewq7jzseCc/0,2817,2397113,00.asp

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