Internet filtering while behind proxy at school, and at home.....

[tlaw]

Hi All,

Our students are using a mini-note while at school, logged into the domain. At school we have a proxy server stopping access to inappropriate websites (ISA). My problem is while student is at home on the same mini-note, we do not have any filtering. Any recommendations for a free content filtering which works within a proxy environment, then at home with little upkeep or if required via a central management console? I've looked at K9, but it doesn't work within the school due to the proxy server and it doesn't have central management.

 

Thanks for your ideas and help....

T

[NikChillin]

We worry about what they see while at school and expect the parents to oversee them at home, it isn't our responsibility. The equipment is either restricted to a limited user so they can not change the internet settings, if they have the pernission to change them we hand over responsibility to their parents.

[FN-GM]

You could forward some ports and give your ISA server a public DNS name. In your local DNS make the same entry but use it with the internal IP. Then point the clients in IE proxy settings to that ISA server. When they are at home they will then be going through your proxy server thus they are being filtered.

[pete]

Set them up to fall back to OpenDNS when not onsite?. It's not perfect but if you set it on the laptops it'll work regardless of their home setups.

 

https://store.opendns.com/familyshield/setup/computer

Edited August 5, 2010 by pete

[Ric_]

Smoothwall also make a product called MobileGaurdian which you can configure to direct the computer to the relevant proxy based on location details and it has a local filter. The product is bundled with UTM devices but you should probably speak to the Smoothwall guys for more details.

[tom_newton]

Tanks Ric!

 

MG actually runs a local filter on their PC. It's quite fun really.

[Ric_]

Tanks Ric!

 

MG actually runs a local filter on their PC. It's quite fun really.

 

You can be incredibly cruel with it too

[tom_newton]

That's why it is fun.

 

We're actually contemplating more mobile related entertainment right now...

[p858snake]

Off topic: Out of interest who owns the notebooks? if i was a student and owned it.....

[tlaw]

Thanks for all the quick replys....still plugging away at trying to get this to work. The problem is the school ownes the mini-notes so we are responsible for their use at home as well as at school.

[jamesfed]

We work on the stance that we will provide 'all resonable levels' of web filtering within the school however before any student is given a school PC for use at home (for whatever reason) the parents are required to countersign a AUP that states that outside of school the school is not responsible for any web usage.

 

This way the onus falls on the parents.

[loumazz]

Thats the best approach...unfortunately all it takes is one student to bully another using a school device and a victims parent who goes to the media and the school in question gets its self in the news for all the wrong reasons. while the school isn't libel it still will be blamed especially if software is available to significantly reduce the threat and no one took advantage of it.

The real problem for schools is what happens during school hours. If a child has a vivid wireless account and others are on the account list they can bypass school internet and play Call of Duty for example online and in the classroom. All they need is the vivid wireless stick in their bag. There are instructions out there now on how to....those clever little kiddies...can't stop them from having a good time.

Go to ozed software site and see whats available