Using these programs, parents can also block Web sites and downloads of movies, music or images. Verizon announced in June that it will begin offering similar free security tools for parents.
Internet security software maker Symantec has an online tool it will preview to some parents next month that will notify them by text message when a child attempts to access a forbidden site.
The tool, code-named Watchdog until its official release, also lets parents control who is on the child’s buddy list. Symantec offers online tips at its Norton Family Resource Center.