Review: Spector Pro 5.0
Do you know what your children are doing online? Kai Chandler inspects Spector Pro
| Product | Spector Pro 5.0 |
|---|---|
| Company | Spectorsoft |
| Web | www.surfcontrols.com |
| Price | $149 but on offer at $99 |
| We like | Completely invisible |
| We don't like | Ethical and trust issues. No trial period |
| Rating | 9/10 |
| Requirements |
There's no doubt that a computer is a great learning tool for any child especially when connected to the Internet. However there's a dark side to this access - rarely does a week go by without news stories about chat rooms and internet grooming. Or perhaps you are concerned about your children downloading unpleasant and illegal files and pictures.
To help put your mind at rest you can install a surveillance tool which records how the computer is used. Having looked at several, Spector Pro from Spectorsoft stands out. It runs invisibly in the background to monitor and record every detail of Internet browsing and chat activity. It lets you check what sites have been viewed and examine chat room and email activity. Regular snapshots show details of your child's activity. It can even email you if your child types in something unsuitable.
Let me say at this point that snooping on others raises ethical and trust issues. The approach I take is to let children know that they are to use the computer responsibly and that we have special software so we can see everything they do. You might even show them the program working. It's also important that computers are sited in family areas as far as possible rather than hidden in children's bedrooms. There's more about this in the Top Tips section at www.surfcontrols.com.
Spector Pro is very easy to install and prompts for a password. There's also an option to delete any trace of the installation.
Once installed, it runs silently in the background. If there's a way to be aware that it's running then I've not discovered it.
A special control key sequence brings up an anonymous password entry window to view the captured information. From the screen shot above you can see several sections. The functionality under each of these is summarised below:
Emails - capture emails, whether sent or received. Emails can be viewed even after they've been deleted as a secret copy is made. They can be viewed by Sender, Recipient, Subject and Time/Date. Emails from a variety of mail tools can be captured for example, Outlook, Hotmail, Yahoo Mail, and AOL.
Web Sites - full details of surfing history are captured including date, time, URL and the number of times a site has been accessed. Specific URLs can be blocked from future use. All file transfers are recorded.
Chats/Instant Messaging - both sides of the conversation are captured from AOL chat rooms, AOL Instant Messenger, ICQ, MSN Messenger and Yahoo Messenger. Note - you can doubleclick the screen image to the right to view in full size.
Keystrokes - view any keystrokes and control keys (shift, control etc) entered including passwords.
Program History (new in Version 5.0) - details every program used, for how long and how many keystrokes were entered.
Peer to Peer File Sharing (new in Version 5.0) - with recent publicity about massive fines charged to parents whose children have been using their computer for illegal music downloading this is a great feature. It details all searches and downloads performed in P2P programs such as Kazaa and Limewire.
Screen Snapshots - this is the most useful feature of all - it's like having a video camera on the screen that takes a movie of times when the screen is being actively used. You can set how often "snaps" are taken - up to one a second. This feature alone justifies having Spector Pro. Secret conversations with "strangers," activity on a webcam: the evidence is all collected here. You can playback easily using VCR-like functions such as play and fast forward. Note - you can doubleclick the screen image to the right to view in full size.
Keyword Detection - Not only does Spector Pro offer the above seven recording tools but you can set up a list of keywords or key phrases. If any of these is used, perhaps typed into a document, email or Instant Message window, or even if one of them is viewed on a website then Spector Pro invisibly sends an email alert to an address of your choosing.
Spector Pro is not available on a trial basis, although Spectorsoft do commit to provide a refund within three days if it can not be made to work as advertised. I would have preferred a 30 day trial period. However, support from Spectorsoft is superb, and you won't be disappointed with the product.
To sum up, at USD149 but on offer at USD99.95, Spector is not cheap but really does offer good value for anyone concerned about how a PC is used by other members of the family. Combining seven recording tools with internet access blocking and instant email alerts gives you a very powerful surveillance tool. Highly recommended for any parent concerned about what their children are doing on the computer. It really is "top of the snoops."
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