So Protect Me - Blocker review
safeguard your computer and credit card against unauthorised usage (23/01/2009)
If you use a computer in the home that's shared by more than one person, be they children, flat-mates or lodgers, you may well be concerned about how it is being used. So Protect Me Blocker addresses these issues and, among other things, protects financial information such as credit card details by restricting access.
During installation you're required to answer a series of security questions; 13 in total, covering everything from your mother's maiden name to your eye colour. We're not quite sure why this much information is required, merely to verify your authority later on, but you are allowed to skip a maximum of five questions if you're not comfortable entering this many details.
After a username and password have been added to prevent unauthorised use of the software, you can add credit cards to a 'protected' list before the main interface appears. The idea of this is that any cards that are added may be used provided the correct password is entered; any cards that aren't on the list are automatically blocked.
To protect against sites that store your payment information to help speed up purchases, such as Amazon or eBay, the software is also capable of 'challenging' access to websites, which again requires password entry to proceed. This has the added advantage of allowing you to control access to sites in general, which will obviously be useful to prevent minors from accessing unsuitable content. In addition there is similar control over applications which could, for example, be used to restrict access to casino software, instant messaging or inappropriate games.
All of this is controlled using a list that is customisable through the software, allowing you to switch between 'blocked', 'allowed', 'challenge', or time-specific access that restricts use to specific time periods. This could be used to prevent children playing games for too long or using the computer after a certain hour.
Additional websites and applications can be added to the lists provided, and you'll find that some include age ratings which can be used to prevent access based on a usage age configured from within the software.
For quick adjustments there are options here to deactivate all protection so that you can use the computer without being questioned or invoke a 'zero tolerance' policy, which blocks all payment cards and websites/applications marked as 'challenged' or 'blocked'.
Finally, the Blocker Use Log reports any activity with details of the date, time and description of sites and software that have been authorised, or if an attempt to access them has failed.
So Protect Me Blocker is actually a pretty simple package but don't be put off by the rather bland interface. It has been well designed and is far-reaching enough to offer access protection over just about every aspect of your computer. The only real criticism we have is that there are no additional features, such as form-filling or password management, that would have tied in nicely here as a more comprehensive suite.
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