The filters were arranged in libaries by category. (See categories below)
The programs allowed the parent to add or remove specific sites from the allowed and not-allowed site lists.
The programs allowed parents to specify certain words or patterns that would trigger the software if a web page contained them.
Since there is often more than one child who uses the computer, some programs allow different profiles to be set up for different people. CyberPatrol allowed for up to nine different configurations to be saved. NetNanny did not specify a limit on the number of different users allowed. CyberSitter and SurfWatch, however, only allowed for one profile.
Filtering Techniques
Sites are blocked according to their URL. (The URL is the address of the Internet resource; for example, WWW sites begin with http://).
Sites are blocked completely, instead of only certain pages as above, according to the site name. An IP number is the numeric code that corresponds to the site. The child cannot get around the system by typing in the IP instead of the hostname.
Pages are blocked according to certain words or phrases that appear. This allows new sites or sites that are not on the blocked lists to be filtered based on their content.
Searches for certain keywords are blocked even before the results are displayed. The three programs that support this use pattern matching. The filtring programs either give a message that states that the search is blocked or return with a page that states that no sites were found.
Applications and websites that allow users to chat in real-time with other people are blocked.
Filtering Areas
CyberPatrol and NetNanny allow the parent to block, monitor, and/or limit programs used and games played on the computer aside from filtering the Internet.
Protects Files/Disks from Deletion/Formatting
CyberPatrol and NetNanny also keep vital operating system files from being deleted or changed. They also protect against formatting the hard drives.
The same two programs allows parents to specify information they don't want given out by their children. For example, a parent can block the child from giving out their phone number or credit card number.
The categories listed are the ones that the company that produced the programs provided. A larger number of categories simply means that the filters were divided into smaller lists. It does not necessarily mean that there are more filters or more blocked sites. A greater number of categories, though, allows the parent to be more specific in choosing to what the child should not have access.