Options for Setting Up Parental Controls on Home Devices

Dear TKA Parents,

I wanted to share with you a list of options for setting up parental controls on your devices at home. Note: Your student devices are protected by TKA's content filter when they are connected to TKA's network at school.

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) Providing Parental Control Options:

Comcast offers 3 wireless generations, all with parental control features:

Wireless Gateway 1 (Model TG852G, TG862G, SMCD3GNV, TC8305C)
Wireless Gateway 2 (Model DPC3939, TC8706C)
Wireless Gateway 3 (Model DPC3941T, TC8717, TG1682G)
To setup Firewall on Comcast routers
To setup Parental Controls on Comcast routers

AT&T offers parental controls using their Smart Home Manager which you can setup on your AT&T wireless router. You can also check out the AT&T Secure Family smartphone app.

Other WiFi Routers with Parental Control Features:

Select NETGEAR routers use Circle's Smart Parental Controls
Google Nest Wifi Pro
Asus RT-AX82U
TP-Link Archer AX55
Synology RT2600ac

Operating System Parental Controls:

Microsoft Family Safety and Microsoft Parental Control Features
Apple Screen Time

DNS Service That Provides Web Filtering:

Popular Antivirus Programs Offering Parental Control:

Here are some suggestions to keep in mind:

Whatever route you decide to take to protect your children online, always enable parental monitoring so you can check the logs, your children's browsing history, and discuss your findings with them. Please remember to disable just the content/web filtering portion of your parental controls while your student is at school to prevent any conflicts with the school filtering.
Never give administrator privileges on any computer to your children. Make sure they are always logged on to their computer as a limited user. (Limited-user accounts cannot, for example, install or remove programs, edit registry and system-wide settings, or change network settings.)
- Windows 10/11
- Mac OS
If your child has a video gaming system, set up parental controls on those as well.
- PlayStation 5
- Xbox
- Nintendo Switch
Make sure your children understand the dangers of talking to strangers and sharing personal information online. (They should not provide full name, address, phone number, SSN, etc.)
Teach your children that whatever they post online, e.g. on social media, forums, emails, chat rooms, will stay online even if they delete it; so, they must think very carefully before they type.
Always block the use of Peer to Peer (P2P/Torrent) programs
Keep you Antivirus software up to date: If you are paying for an antivirus subscription, be sure to renew.
Keep your Operating System (OS) native firewall turned on or use a third party firewall.
- For Windows
- For MAC OS

Lastly, please review The Federal Bureau of Investigation website, "A Parent's Guide to Internet Safety," and The Department of Justice website, "Keeping Children Safe Online."

Blessings,

Magdy Abadir
Information Technology Director