Personal web surfing at work
5 - 15 hours / week
Employees abusing Internet
60% of employees
Most distracting websites
Shopping, Sports, Gambling, Social Media, Jobs & Porn
Why use web filtering software?
BrowseControl Helps Businesses Improve Security & Productivity
Block distracting, inappropriate, and high-risk websites based on URLs, domains, IP addresses, and content categories
Stop bandwidth hogs from congesting your network
Block network ports and undesirable applications
The cost of an employee’s lost of productivity from online distraction is approximately $3,036* per year per person
*$12 x 1 hour per day x 253 working days
See Our Web Filtering Software in Action
Control Internet Access
Control employee internet access based on content categories, URLs, IP addresses, and domains
URL Filtering
Category Filtering
Application Blocker
Monitor Computer Activity
Combine BrowseControl with the BrowseReporter employee monitoring software for complete control over employee web use.
Track Websites Visited
Active Application Usage
Bandwidth Consumption
Easy to Manage
Controlling employee internet access with BrowseControl web filtering software is as simple as a few clicks.
Centralized Console
Client Deployment
Granular Control
Quick Start
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4The Benefits of Web Content Filtering Software
Reduce Network Congestion
The abuse of bandwidth hogs on your network will lead to severe network congestion. Improve the efficiency of your network by monitoring bandwidth usage and adding unproductive bandwidth hogs such as Twitch, Netflix, and Disney+ to the blacklist of your web filtering software.
Increase Web Security
Web filtering software is a critical security control for protecting sensitive data. Stop your users from accessing malicious or otherwise dangerous websites by blocking risky content categories.
Increase Employee Productivity
Use BrowseControl’s content filtering features to block access to distracting websites and computer applications such as social media sites, computer games, and video streaming services.
Prevent Data Loss
Protect sensitive data against insider theft by blocking web-based data egress points such as social media sites, unauthorized cloud storage services, file sharing programs, and FTP ports. For optimal data loss prevention combine web filtering with employee monitoring and USB access control.
Maintain a Respectful Workplace
Proactively blocking inappropriate websites with web filtering software reduces opportunities for accidental or malicious misuse of the internet in the workplace. Web filtering software blocks employees from accessing content that is unacceptable for your workplace such as porn, grotesque imagery, violence, and profanity.
Fight Distractions in the Classroom
Using web filtering software on school devices ensures that students are not distracted by technology during class time. Internet filtering software allows students to access digital learning materials without unproductive websites becoming a hindrance to their learning.
Meet CIPA Compliance Standards
Schools and libraries in the United States need to be in compliance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) to qualify for highly desired telecommunications discounts through the Schools and Libraries Program (E-rate). These organizations will use web content filtering solutions to meet CIPA compliance requirements.
Web Filtering Software FAQ
What Is Web Filtering Software?
Web filtering software prevents users from viewing certain URLs or websites. When the user attempts to visit a website that is blocked by the web filter they will either be redirected to another website (such as an acceptable use policy) or provided with a message that tells the user that the website has been blocked from being accessed on the network.
Web filtering software is used by businesses that want to prevent their employees from accessing inappropriate, unsafe, or distracting websites. Schools tend to use web filtering software in a similar manner, with an emphasis on blocking offensive content to maintain CIPA compliance.
Is Web Filtering Software the Same as a Firewall?
No, web filtering software is not the same as firewalls. The key difference between web filtering software and firewalls is that a firewall monitors and blocks inbound/outbound web traffic based on IP addresses, data packets, and ports, whereas web filters block specific URLs and categories of websites.
Web filters are best used when granular control over specific URLs is required. Web filtering software prevents users from accessing websites that are inappropriate, unproductive, or high-risk.
A firewall is best used to block potentially malicious network traffic and data packets while allowing legitimate traffic through.
Does CurrentWare support Active Directory?
Yes, the BrowseControl web filtering software and all of the other solutions in the CurrentWare Suite support Active Directory. This allows you to easily deploy the CurrentWare Client and manage your users using your existing Active Directory hierarchy.
AD Sync: CurrentWare allows you to integrate your Active Directory hierarchy into the CurrentWare Console so you can easily manage your users using your existing Organizational Units.
Client Installation: The CurrentWare Client can be deployed through Active Directory using a batch file or a .MSI file.
With CurrentWare’s Active Directory sync you can manage both AD and non-AD users from the same console. A special group will be automatically created in the CurrentWare Console for your non-AD users so you can easily apply CurrentWare policy updates to all of your managed users.
How Does Web Filtering Software Work?
Allow/Block Lists: Block Lists (blacklists) are a list of URLs that are not allowed to be visited. A block list approach allows all websites to be visited except for those on the block list. In contrast to that, an Allow List (whitelist) approach blocks all websites except for a few that are on the allow list.
Content Category Filtering: Websites are blocked based on predefined content categories such as pornography, shopping, or social media. Rather than manually blocking specific URLs the web filter administrators can use a category filtering database provided by the web filtering software.
For more granular control both methods of filtering can be combined together. For example, a category-based blacklist could be used to block the Social Media category and an allow list can be used to make exceptions for Facebook.
The best web filtering software solutions will allow you to configure unique allow/block lists so that you can customize web content access permissions based on the unique needs of each user group. For example, an enterprise would want to ensure that their IT personnel has lesser restrictions than the rest of their staff.
