Parental controls on tablets

[brookheather]

I've seen a number of threads about buying tablets with wireless internet for children this Christmas. Please be aware that tablets don't come with built-in parental controls or content filtering (though you can disable Safari in iOS). A simple and free solution is to change your router's DNS setting to use OpenDNS servers which filter websites for adult content - it is free and simple to setup - instructions here:

http://www.opendns.com/home-solutions/parental-controls/

Essentially any internet request is checked against a list of unsuitable websites and the page is blocked if necessary - this requires no configuration of your internet devices as it is all performed through your existing router.

 

[zAndy1]

Is that configurable at the IP address level? Doesn't sound like it, sounds like a blanket filter which would be a bit of a pain in the ass really

 

[brookheather]

It is a blanket filter but can be configured. You can also change the DNS settings for any PC or laptop to use your regular ISP DNS or Google DNS (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4) which bypasses the restriction. The purpose of changing the router DNS is to restrict access on children's devices.