Net Nanny Versus Norton Parental Controls
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- The Good
- 18 filter categories
- Instant text messaging notifications for flagged activity
- Automatic summary reporting on Internet activity
- The Bad
- Social media monitoring sold separately
- Can get very expensive for multiple devices
Net Nanny has been an industry leader in parental control software for more than two decades. The extensive reporting options and customizable filters allow you to exert just the right amount of control over your child’s online activity. The downside is that it can be expensive and can be antiquated compared to some of the newer offerings. You can sign up for Net Nanny here.
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- The Good
- Automatically track Internet activity
- Help balance online and offline time
- Limit website access to safe and approved sites
- The Bad
- Social media support is limited
Norton Family Premier Parental Controls let you add a layer of security to all of your children’s online activities. From a single platform, you can monitor what they do on a home computer, tablet, smartphone or other portable devices. You can sign up for Norton here.
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- Price
- $39.99 per device
- $12 per device for five devices or more
- $9 per device for 10 devices or more
- Only $12 for the app
- Free two-week trial
Net Nanny falls into the more expensive category for parental control solutions. Charging per device can rapidly increase the cost, particularly when many people own multiple devices. If you have several children and each has a tablet and smartphone in addition to home computers and laptops, the cost can rapidly grow to more than $100 per year.
- Price
- $49.99 per year
For an affordable price, you can add award-winning parental controls to virtually every internet-capable device with Norton Family Premier Parental Controls. This web-based service monitors and controls access remotely, so you don’t need to be in the room to monitor your children’s browsing habits.
- Features
- Internet filter
- Pornography blocking
- Time management
- Profanity masking
- Alerts and reporting
- Remote administration
As a long-time industry leader in the parental controls space, Net Nanny offers a complete suite of features designed to give you peace of mind about your children’s online activities. From blocking dangerous or adult sites to filtering out profanity while still displaying the rest of the page, Net Nanny does it all. Other parental control solutions may offer some of these features, but few have such a complete range of products.
- Features
- Browser history tracking
- Automatic alerts
- Personal information protection
- Easy setup for restricted browsing
- Time monitoring and limitations
Norton Family Premier Parental Controls bring all of the features you want into a single platform. You can see what your kids are doing and when. Set limitations for what sites they can visit and limit their total daily time spent online.
- Remote Access
- Remote management
- Remote reporting
- Remote administrative login
With Net Nanny, all you need is an internet connection to adjust settings, change access schedules or approve a website. Any changes you make filter down to all connected devices within one minute. Children don’t have to wait for long before they can log back onto a site, and you don’t have to worry if you need to block a site remotely. Using a computer or the app from your smartphone, you can make changes as needed, at home or on the go.
- Remote Access
- Remote management
- Remote setting changes
- Remote abuse alerts
Anything you can do from your home computer, you can access through the online Norton Family Premier Parental Controls dashboard. The service is web-based, so as long as you have internet access, you can use all of the features remotely. If you notice a problem site, you can add it to the block list. If you see that your child has spent too much time playing online games and not enough on homework, you can remove access to game sites, all from anywhere and on the go.
- Supported Devices
- Windows
- Mac
- iOS
- Android
As a cloud-based system, Net Nanny offers remote access to your account through any device running on a compatible operating system. This includes most PCs, laptops, tablets and smartphones. As long as you have an internet connection, you can log in to the management portal and make changes to settings and schedules.
- Supported Devices
- Windows
- Android 4 or later
- iOS 9 or later
Norton Family Premier Parental Controls work with any device that runs on a compatible operating system. Since this security solution runs on the most common Windows, Android and iOS versions, it is compatible with most computers, laptops, tablets and smartphones. Be aware that it is not MAC compatible, so you will need to look for an alternate solution if you’re a MAC household.
- Social Media Monitoring
- Yes
With most cyberbullying happening through social media channels, it makes sense to prioritize this particular feature. Net Nanny offers a Social package that focuses solely on social media monitoring for an additional fee. Many other parental control options don’t offer any form of social media monitoring, so while the upcharge does make Net Nanny even more expensive, the ability to monitor social media activity is a big plus.
- Social Media Monitoring
- No
Social media is one of the digital avenues where children are most at risk. Unfortunately, Norton Family Premier does not currently include social media monitoring as part of the suite of security tools at your disposal. Hulu and YouTube monitoring are available, but there are many other social networks that could slip by.
Net Nanny: User Reviews
Norton Parental Controls: User Reviews
Net Nanny: Comments
Norton Parental Controls: Comments
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How Does Net Nanny Work?
Getting started with Net Nanny is quick and easy. The installation wizard walks you through the process of installing the monitoring software locally on your computer and helps you set up profiles and accounts for each family member. During the setup process, you’ll also set permissions and features to deal with different levels of internet access.
Once you have the basics set up on your computer, you can also install the app on individual devices. Have your kids download the app onto their phones and tablets. You can let Net Nanny know which device goes with which profile to start monitoring.
What Makes NetNanny Stand Out?
With any good software, the features are really what makes the difference. Net Nanny offers a comprehensive list of features that let you customize internet access for your family. From scheduling to filtering, Net Nanny does it all.
With Net Nanny, you can block internet activity during school hours or after bedtime. You can also set limits for cumulative internet use.For example, if your house rule is no more than 10 hours online each week, this parental control software will track individual usage and automatically cut off access once a user reaches 10 hours. There’s no need for you to track which kid has already used up their online time — Net Nanny does it for you.
The option to add social media monitoring is another big plus. Kids often don’t realize the impact of online bullying, so it’s important for parents to be aware of what is happening on social media sites. By tracking activity and seeing conversations as they happen, Net Nanny lets you respond in real time to real issues. Since it’s a web-based platform, you don’t need to install any software to start monitoring. Simply give Net Nanny the email address or social media account information you want to track, and you’ll start getting reports. It’s that simple and that powerful.
Common Net Nanny Reviews
Net Nanny consistently gets excellent ratings from software reviewers. The granular filtering options and flexibility offered through the Net Nanny suite make it a top contender when comparing parental control software. Like all of the best parental control platforms, it has its fair share of negative reviews, mainly from kids.
Parents may give five-stars on their Net Nanny reviews, but the kids dealing with restricted access generally don’t. In fact, the better the software works, the lower you should expect the reviews to be. After all, there are more children complaining than there are parents offering a thumbs up.
The only area where this parental control software has some work to do is for iOS. While they offer an app through Apple, the functionality leaves a lot to be desired. The Android app delivers on most of the promises made to PC users, and with the option to buy the app at a much-reduced price point. NetNanny delivers consistent quality and a very comprehensive set of features.
Is Net Nanny for Me?
Selecting a parental control software can be difficult. Some install like spyware, and your children never know they’re being monitored. Others send out notifications to you and your children whenever they try to visit a blocked site. Ultimately, if you want a one-stop-shop for parental controls and monitoring along with some of the most granular filtering options, Net Nanny might be exactly what you’re looking for.
Net Nanny lets you block everything from pornography to anime, so you can be very specific about what is and is not allowed. If you have tech-savvy kids who find workarounds to other parental control options, you might want to give it a try. Instead of working through your existing browsers, Net Nanny blocks all other browsers and only lets kids use their proprietary option. The result is easy online monitoring that includes both activity logs and scheduling.
Depending on the number of devices you need to monitor, Net Nanny can be a very affordable option that offers maximum coverage and some nifty features. The ability to continue to display page content while only blocking profanity is helpful for you and the kids. Adding social media monitoring is another big bonus, particularly since you only pay once for the service, not per account.
How Does Norton Family Premier Work?
Every device has the option to allow different logins. When your children use the computer, they can set their own login and password information. Using that distinct profile, you can employ Norton Family Premier to add external protections and controls. As the administrator of the parental controls, you can:
- Control when your children can use a device
- Monitor and block certain browsing habits
- Automatically set up age appropriate browsing restrictions
- Get automatic notifications whenever a child attempts to visit a blocked site
With all of the control available, Norton still encourages parental controls be used as a part of communication. Instead of installing parental controls like spyware, Norton sets up house rules surrounding internet use and involves both parents and children in the discussion about what is and is not allowed.
What Makes Norton Family Premier Stand Out?
One of the reasons why Norton Family Premier so consistently wins awards and praise from users is simple — it works. It is not browser dependent, so add-ons and plugins do not allow your children to circumvent your control settings, unlike some of the competition. After logging in to your Norton Family account, the software will handle all of the setup when you download the app to the local device.
There’s no need to dive into your router settings, figure out which software version you need to install or even set up custom restrictions. Norton Family Premier has automated the setup process, so all you need to do is tell Norton which of your children own which devices and their respective ages. You do the same with any profiles on home computers. Norton has existing age-based settings already in place, so you can start implementing house rules and restricted sites from the first day. Over time, you can tweak and customize your settings to allow specific sites or schedule availability.
Common Reviews of Norton Family Premier
PC Mag, Tom’s Guide and other industry publications routinely give Norton Family Premier a top rating. These industry experts look under the hood and compare the parental controls offered by Norton to other services available on the market today, and Norton often tops the list.
On user-based sites like the Google Play Store, Norton grabs an average rating of 2.8-stars. Normally, a rating like that would be a big red flag, but in this case, it may be one of the best pieces of advertising you can get. A large portion of the one-star reviews on the app store come from children who are upset about the restrictions the app imposes. If the app didn’t work, there would be no need for kids to complain. Of course, these complaints do highlight the importance of communication about parental controls and how they will be used. Remind your kids that nothing online is really private and that house rules don’t stop at the front door with parental controls.
Is Norton Family Premier Controls for Me?
If your children spend large portions of their day online or using a device, Norton Family Premier could be a good solution to the problems that can crop up with unfettered access. You might tell your children no video games until their homework is done, but that can be hard to enforce given the sheer number of devices that allow gaming access. With Norton, you can set the rule and make it stick.
You can also gradually introduce your children to the realities of online usage and monitoring. Many children assume their digital footprint is essentially anonymous. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Every activity you or your children take online can be monitored and tracked. Responsive advertising is just one way that sites and ISPs use your browsing history. By using parental controls to track their online activity, you can show them how much information they are giving away every time they use Google or log in to a favorite site.
When you have children accessing the internet, it’s important to have conversations about safety and security. Norton Family Premier is a good place to start the discussion and explain the rules. Norton Family Premier Controls could be a parental control solution that works for your family.
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