Monday, November 3, 2003		Feature

Block Net muck
Gurupbar Singh

CYBERSPACE is one of the modern frontiers in the world of communication sciences. The Internet offers unlimited opportunities for education, science, entertainment and business. Equally it has become a home for unstoppable pornography and illegal activities. The propaganda for groups and products of all kinds is as easily accessible as any other online information regarding museums, informative news groups and classified ads. The use of the Internet has increased manifolds and so has the risk of undesired intrusion. Not long ago, the Internet was the exclusive domain of educators, scientists and researchers.

Not now. With open challenge to the Communications Decency Act, an amendment to the Telecommunications Act that criminalises the public display of "indecent" contact over the Net, decency has become an open question. Due to this, many families and businesses are turning to software blocking programs to prevent user access to questionable material over the Internet. Most of the Internet blocking programs for the PCs track and block a wide range of objectionable materials such as pornography, hate mail and racism. Generally, these programs work by blocking objectionable sites provided in the control list. As more and more sites are added everyday, the control list for blocking the sites on the Internet must be updated periodically. Generally, updates are available with manufacturers who charge monthly or yearly subscription. Most common blocking programs available are Surfwatch, Cybersitter, Cyber patrol, Net Blocker Plus, Net Nanny and Cyberoam.

Generally, most of these are available with customisation option according to individual needs. Some other programs block certain file types, executable or application files or any document on hard drive, in addition to online material.

The blocking programs available for business use are more complex and costly because they contain both blocking and monitoring files and users, respectively. Every blocking program is fitted with different options for blocking and monitoring. It also categories objectionable sites into categories, any of which may be blocked.

Its monitoring function allows employers to monitor the amount of time spent by a certain employee on a specific site or a group of sites visited by the employee. There are other similar software packages available that allow the employer to restrict the particular bandwidth being used by its employee or group of employees. It also allows the employer to know the total amount of data files being downloaded by the employees. Blocking software gives families and businesses an invaluable monitoring tool for enforcing decency on the Internet.