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Parental Control using XP

Discussion in 'Windows XP' started by CurryMonster, 2008/03/29.

  1. 2008/03/29
    CurryMonster

    CurryMonster Inactive Thread Starter

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    Hi all, I'm new here - I'll try to behave myself and not make any glaring breaches of your posting rules...

    I run XP (SP2) on our family Dell computer. I am starting to let our 8 year old son use the computer a bit more, and am hoping to allow him to feel trusted and use the computer on his own a bit. I have installed ParentControlBar and Bluecoat K9 web protection for use with Firefox, but wondered if there was anything I could/should do on XP?

    I have set him up with a separate profile, and wondered if there is any way I can limit his access to certain programs only (ie Firefox and iTunes etc). Hopefully the browser protection will prevent this, but is there anything I can do to his profile to stop him loading new programs too (ie from disc)?

    Many thanks in advance for any help,

    Cheers, Moose.

    My computer spec, should it matter...
    Dell dimension 8300 with a Pentium 4 with hyperthreading technology (no idea, just copying it!)
    3.0GHz 800fsb and 1MB cache
    8x/4x DVD+R/+RW and 16x DVD
    120GB 1st SATA hard drive (7200rpm) with 8MB Databurst cache
    2.5GB DDR 400 Dual channel memory (2x256MB, 2x1GB) (was 2x256, I added the extra memory myself, so it might not work properly)
    Creative Labs 5.1 Audigy2 Audio card
    128MB DDR NVidia GeForce FX 5200
    Windows XP Pro SP2

    ... and in an effort to keep all the horrible things away, I've got: AVG 7.5 Internet Security suite, AdAware 2007+, Spybot S+D, Privacy Guardian, Spyware Blaster, Spyware Guard, ParentalControlBar, K9 Web Protector, Spyware Doctor, Reg Mech, Windows Defender and CCleaner - all of which I keep updated regularly (although after a bad experience with Reg Mech I've still got it - but daren't use it!) I also run Secunia PSI beta to try and keep me on top of my updates, but if anyone can suggest a better way to do this I’d be grateful as it appears to have stopped working since my foray into the inside of the computer!
     
    Last edited: 2008/03/29
  2. 2008/03/30
    mailman Lifetime Subscription

    mailman Geek Member

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    Hi, CurryMonster. Welcome to Windows BBS! :)

    I suggest you consider adding one of the following as an extra layer of protection for your computer and your son. Follow the instructions carefully.

    Those Hosts files also block access to many pr0n sites as you'll see if you scan your eyes through one of those Hosts files. (The Hosts file can be opened with Notepad for viewing the contents.)

    Remember to reapply Spybot's "Immunize" feature after installing/replacing a Hosts file. That will append Spybot's own entries into the existing Hosts file.
     
    Last edited: 2008/03/30

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  4. 2008/04/03
    CurryMonster

    CurryMonster Inactive Thread Starter

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    Thanks MailMan, I'll try it and see how I get on.

    Cheers, Moose.
     
  5. 2008/04/03
    mailman Lifetime Subscription

    mailman Geek Member

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    You're welcome, Moose. :)

    If you decide to use hpHosts, then I think you should be aware that Spybot - Search & Destroy scans may flag some of the hpHosts HOSTS file entries as Microsoft.Windows.RedirectedHosts "problems ".

    For example, I am currently using the March 29, 2008 release of hpHosts in my laptop and SpyBot (with current definitions) flagged the following HOSTS entries as Redirected Hosts "problems" when I scanned my laptop today.

    Code:
    # hpHosts last updated on:		29/03/2008 18:36
    # hpHosts last verified by Steven Burn:	29/03/2008 17:00
    
    Line 6399 : 127.0.0.1	ask.com
    Line 12804 : 127.0.0.1	experts-exchange.com
    Line 33921 : 127.0.0.1	www.ask.com
    Line 37954 : 127.0.0.1	www.experts-exchange.com
    
    If I understand correctly, Spybot "thinks" those web site addresses are legitimate but the HOSTS file redirects connection requests for those web site addresses to 127.0.0.1 (the localhost IP address).

    Sometimes malware will modify the HOSTS file with 127.0.0.1 entries for legitimate sites (such as reputable anti-malware related sites) to prevent victims from accessing those sites on the Internet. That makes it more difficult for victims to disinfect their computers. Spybot correctly identifies those HOSTS entries as Redirected Hosts problems.

    In the case of the ask.com and experts-exchange.com entries in hpHosts, I think you can safely ignore those particular Redirected Hosts "problems" the Spybot scan alerts you about.

    If you use either of those sites and you still feel safe doing so, then you can either have Spybot - Search & Destroy "fix" those "problems" or you can manually delete those particular entries from the HOSTS file (or place a # symbol followed by a space at the beginning of each line) with a text editor such as Notepad.

    If you decide to manually edit your HOSTS file, then be sure you save the edited HOSTS file without a file extension. Otherwise, Windows will not use your edited HOSTS file.

    In Windows XP, the path to the Hosts file is typically as follows (if the computer is using a HOSTS file).
    • C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc\HOSTS
    Other Windows operating systems may have a different path to the HOSTS file.


    EDIT: In light of the information above, I do not know why Spybot did not flag the following entries in the hpHosts HOSTS file as Redirected Hosts "problems ".
    Code:
    Line 27339 : 127.0.0.1	static.wc.ask.com
    Line 51939 : 127.0.0.1	wzus.ask.com
    
    That may merit some research. ;)


    EDIT #2: hpHosts Online database searches produced the following information about ask.com and experts-exchange.com.
    According to the Official hpHosts Support Forums, the Classification abbreviations are defined as follows.

    This post is veering off-topic :eek: so I will reserve any further research results for a new thread designated as such in the appropriate forum (if I research this further).


    EDIT #3: Back on topic (sort of)... :)
    The host of hpHosts (Steven Burn) prefers we use the hosts-file.net domain instead of the mysteryfcm.co.uk domain.

    I changed the appropriate links in this post so they direct clicks to hosts-file.net URLs. However, I cannot edit my earlier post with the link to the hpHosts file download page. Therefore, the preferred hpHosts file download page is linked below.
     
    Last edited: 2008/04/04

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