Network Help Desk - February 5, 1996

©1996 Network World, Volume 13, Number 13, Page 31

Help Desk FAQ

How can I block access to certain World-Wide Web sites?

You can use software to filter out sites your organization deems inappropriate, says Wayne Spivak president of SBA.NET.WEB, an Internet consultancy in Bellmore, NY.

You can also establish the same type of rules that define acceptable uses for office equipment, such as copiers, facsimile machines and phone systems.

Two products that provide screening or blocking of electronic mail to certain addresses as well as access to specific Internet newsgroups, Gopher servers, file archive sites and Web sites are SurfWatch from SurfWatch Software, Inc. and Cybersitter from Solid Oak Software, Inc. Both products use a TCP/IP filtering system to prohibit connections to inappropriate sites from company-owned workstations.

Both products include a database of sexually explicit sites that can be automatically filtered out. You can also add other sites to a restricted access list. In addition, the products use algorithims to scan keywords utilized in accessing sites, to further stymie workers in their pursuit of access to sites deemed inappropriate or unproductive.