Tech Shout!

Following the recent report of increasing Web sites featuring child abuse, Global Security One (GSEC1) is warning parents that they need to remain aware of their kid’s online activities.

It is common knowledge that potentially damaging online material can take many forms including chatrooms, Web sites, blogs, abusive emails and even even videos.

Thus GSEC1 has undertaken a four year development program that has resulted in the development of the XGate device which monitors real-time children’s activity on the Internet. This device then alerts parents by email or text message if necessary.

The Xgate device that has been developed by GSEC1 will:

flash an alert page (which reads for example ‘’Your attempt to access the site has been BLOCKED by XGate Web Content filtering CATEGORY- Pornography) on the PC screen should a user try to access a website with pornographic content; the page will stay on the screen until the child decides to navigate away from the site

email or text the website address to parents to advise them so they can discuss with their children later

block emails with pornographic or bullying content and attachments via its intelligent email filter

text or email parents if inappropriate or ‘trigger’ language occurs while their children are in chat rooms and at risk of being groomed; known grooming language includes phrases such as ‘sex’, ‘secret’, ‘meet’, ‘mobile phone number’, ‘age’, ‘webcam’, ‘are you alone’ etc

control access to specific websites at pre-agreed times to children, e.g. education websites only between 18:00 and 20:00 for support with school assignments.

Mark Brooks explains how GSEC1’s XGate offers this level of control: “The XGate features an intelligent web filter, which is a dynamic solution checking against a centralised database containing millions of websites that are constantly updated, categorised and rated according to their content. The XGate comes with a control centre where parents can select websites and email content which is to be off-limits, for example sites with pornographic or bullying content. Should a child then attempt to access such a site the XGate cross references with the dynamic database, identifies that it is prohibited material, blocks the site, generates the alert page and informs the parents.

“In the unlikely event that a particular website requested does not currently appear within the categories listed in the database, the web filter intelligently uses a ’smart’ algorithm to rate the website and will block or allow the website accordingly, and also update the central database - all in real time.”

Access to the control centre is via a password chosen and known only by the parents so that children cannot override it and change the categorisation. Should, however, a parent want to allow a child access to a site as a reward, for example a specific games website, the parent can enter the domain name of the site in the ‘exceptions’ section of the control centre and then remove access if they wish thereafter.

Unlike most traditional security solutions for home PC users, XGate is not a piece of software that usually slows PCs down. In fact, it is a hardware device that plugs into the PC and includes an ADSL modem, enabling the user to safely browse the Internet as fast as the connection allows.

The XGate device will sell for a price of £99.95