Webroot Child Safe Provides Improved Parental Control Software

WebKnowHow
Monday, November 20, 2006; 08:48 AM

Webroot Software, Inc., developer of the award-winning anti-spyware software Spy Sweeper, announced the availability of Child Safe parental control software. Built on Webroot’s best of breed philosophy, Child Safe is designed specifically for parents looking for an easy-to-use and highly effective solution to managing their children’s online activities.

“We have a deep-rooted commitment to protecting all online users – including children and teens – from the most harmful online security threats. However, we recognize that in an era where MySpace and other social networking sites reign supreme, threats are not always in the form of spyware or viruses,” said C. David Moll, CEO of Webroot Software. “Child Safe puts parents in the driver’s seat by enabling them to quickly and easily protect their children from dangerous Web sites and online predators and teach them how to make safe surfing choices in the future.”

Webroot surveyed a number of consumers regarding their current parental control programs. Below are a few of the key findings:

• More than two-thirds of parental control users are not fully satisfied with their current parental controls program. They are seeking a more effective product that has a broader range of capabilities and is easier to use.
• Parents' top concerns regarding their child’s online time: 1) predatory behavior by strangers and 2) exposure to adult content.
• Reasons parents sited most often for being dissatisfied with their current parental controls software were: blocking too many acceptable sites, ability of children to circumvent the parental controls, ineffectiveness, and difficulty in using the program.

To reach concerned parents, Webroot, together with Best Buy, will offer Child Safe exclusively to customers through the holiday season. The retailer’s computer support task force, Geek Squad, identified an unmet customer need and approached Webroot to help find a solution.

“Families today are dependent on access to the web for getting school work done, running the household and staying connected. And while parents tell us they really value the internet, they worry about dangers that are, unfortunately, lurking online,” said Sean Skelley, senior vice president of Services at Best Buy. “Webroot is a brand they’ve come to trust for protection. With Child Safe, mom and dad can feel more confident that they have dramatically reduced their kids’ vulnerability online. We couldn’t be happier with the product.”

Product Features & Details

Webroot Child Safe includes a number of features consumers are looking for in a parental control program including customizable profiles, safety measures, scheduling and time limits as well as monitoring and reporting.

Customizable Profiles

Parents are able to manage Internet usage for multiple users through customizable profiles. Based on these profiles, parents can control the Web sites each child can access based on any combination of over 60 content categories, specific Web site addresses or keywords. Control settings may be the same for all users, or specified independently for each child.

Safety Measures

For most of today’s teens, bypassing existing parental control programs can be easy, but Webroot’s tenure in the anti-spyware industry has uniquely positioned the company to easily combat security-savvy kids. Specific safety measures ensure that once installed, Child Safe can only be removed or modified by the administrator.

Scheduling and Time Limits

Child Safe offers both a time limit feature as well as a scheduling feature to help parents manage not only how many hours the kids are spending on the computer, but also when that time is being spent. A parent can easily set up a schedule to manage each child’s use of specific programs, allocating the amount of time each day that a child can spend on the computer accessing the Internet or playing games.

Monitoring and Reporting

Child Safe offers easy to set up, customizable reports that inform parents about when and where their children are going online. The reports can be generated daily, weekly or monthly then viewed online or sent via email, so a parent can receive reports away from home.

Pricing and Availability

Child Safe is available exclusively at Best Buy this holiday season as well as online at www.webroot.com for $39.95 for a 3-user license. Customers can also purchase Child Safe through their local Geek Squad when having a new computer set up or an existing machine serviced. Child Safe may be installed on up to three computers and supports an unlimited number of users per computer.