Filtering the internet can be done two different ways. You can physically block access to specific websites and internet applications using special internet content filter software. This is extremely efficient while doing what it is supposed to do: blocking inappropriate websites to users that shouldn’t be viewing that content. Furthermore it can always be configured to different levels of access. However, is it too much? Does it constrain an individual’s intellectual freedom? Should we instead rely on individual responsibility and what parents teach their children to what is appropriate to view on the web?

Some researchers say installing internet content filters are dimming our intellectual freedom, blocking important data that should be free and accessible to all. However, many reasons this type of software is installed is to increase productivity in areas like offices and businesses. Libraries and schools use internet filtering software to keep kids safe from viewing inappropriate materials such as pornography, illegal substances, and other content that could be considered harmful to children.

While many will say it should be down to how we teach our children what is appropriate to access on the internet and what is not, many children aren’t privileged enough to discover the internet with their parents. More and more parents work full time hours, sometimes leaving their children unsupervised at home, able to surf the internet several hours without proper guidance. Some parents may not know anything about the internet, and are unaware of the dangers it can pose to children. This can be an excellent reason that internet filtering software should be used.

It should be a parent’s responsibility to teach kids what to access, but sometimes even with that extra knowledge, kids can become misguided. With the extra backup of an internet filter, they are provided with more protection. All this information can be transpose to the business environment. As employees become the employer’s responsibility, it is very difficult to teach all of them that inappropriate browsing at work can damage the company. Thus, businesses also benefit from gained productivity with the use of access and content filtering.