SOS Filtered Surfing Policy

SurfontheSafeside.com
currently offers 2 levels of filtering:

U-certificate: Universal (max filter)
and
PG-certificate: Parental Guidence (lower filter)

Both PG and U block out all major catagories of inappropriate content (see below) but U also blocks out unmonitored Chatrooms and online messaging services, which are also used by paedophiles to contact children and adolescents.
U also blocks out public web space like Yahoo Clubs and Geocities as these are used for the same purposes, as well as promoting pornography (SOS members can notify us of acceptable content and we review and unblock those pages).

NEW Block catagories protect you from threats:

Blocked by U-certificate only:

Chat
Chat sites, services that allow short messages to be sent to others immediately in real time. Downloadable chat software. Moderated Chatrooms are allowed under U-certificate (see below)

Message/Bulletin Boards
Sites that permit semi-permanent messages to be posted and read by others. (See also Moderated)

Tasteless/Gross
Bodily functions. Tasteless humor. Graphic medical photos. Some extreme forms of body modification (cutting, branding, genital piercing).

Lingerie
Models in lingerie (except those that qualify for Nudity).

Free Pages
Sites where home page space is offered for free. These sites historically have done nothing to prevent capricious abuse of their services by users who post offensive content under multiple pseudonyms, making them difficult to track. Individual pages that have been reviewed by SOS on such sites are removed from this category, but filed under other categories as necessary.
http://www.angelfire.com/
http://www.geocities.com/

Shareware/Freeware [NEW]
Sites in this category provide repositories of download copies of shareware and freeware. Shareware is distributed on the basis of an honor system. Most shareware is delivered free of charge, but the author usually requests that you pay a small fee if you like the program and use it regularly. Freeware is software that is available without any cost. Though useful for software these can contain virus and malicious code that can compromise your security. Should only be installed competant and authorised persons.

Usenet News [NEW]
This category contains sites that provide Web access to Usenet news groups and archives of files uploaded to news groups. These sites though often useful for research are also used by paedophiles.

Visual Search Engine [NEW]
This category contains URLs of sites that provide image-specific search results such as thumbnail pictures (can contain pornographic thumbnail material stored in search engine cache).

Blocked by U-level and PG:

Adults Only
Material labelled by its author or publisher as being strictly for adults. (Examples: "Adults only", "You must be 18 to visit this site", "Registration is allowed only for people 18 or older", "You must be of legal drinking age to visit this site")

Hate/Discrimination
Advocating discrimination against others based on race, religion, gender, nationality, or sexual orientation.

Illegal
Advocating, promoting, or giving advice on carrying out acts widely considered illegal. This includes lock-picking, bomb-making, fraud, breaching computer security ("hacking"), phone service theft ("phreaking"), pirating software, or evading law enforcement.

Malicious Sites [NEW]
Sites in this category deploy code designed specifically to hijack a computer's settings or activity.

Pornography
Material intended to be sexually arousing or erotic. (See also Sex and Nudity)

Sex
Images or descriptions of sexual activity. Any sexual merchandise. Sexual fetishism. (See also Pornography and Nudity)

SpyWare [NEW]
This category contains URLs that download software that covertly gathers user information through the user's Internet connection, without his or her knowledge, usually for advertising purposes. This may be considered a violation of privacy and may have bandwidth and security implications. These practices are not part of the normal practice of software registration. This category is populated with additional input and verification from various third party sources.

Violence
Graphic images or written descriptions of wanton violence or grave injury (mutilation, maiming, dismemberment, etc.). Includes graphically violent games.

Alcohol
Advocating or promoting recreational use of alcohol. (See also Adults Only)

Drugs
Advocating or promoting recreational use of any controlled substance. (Also see Illegal)

Gambling
Gambling services, or information relevant primarily to gambling.

Nudity
Bare or visible genitalia, pubic hair, buttocks, female breasts, etc. (See also Swimsuits, Lingerie, Sex and Pornography)

Profanity
Crude, vulgar, or obscene language or gestures.

Murder/Suicide
Information on committing murder or suicide.

School Cheating Info
Any site that promotes plagiarism or similar cheating among students (such as by offering term papers, exam keys, etc.).

Tobacco
Advocating or promoting recreational use of tobacco. (See also Adults Only)

Weapons
Information on use of weapons, weapon collecting, or weapon making.

Personals (D)
Personal advertisements, including "mail-order brides." (See also Adults Only)

Personal Information
Sites that gather personal information (name, address, pone number, etc.).

Allowed by U-certificate and PG:

Moderated Chat
A "Message/Bulletin Board" or "Chat" site that prevents offensive material from being posted.

Free Mail
Sites that offer e-mail accounts over the Web for free. Such sites can expose users to harmful content delivered via e-mail file attachments.
http://www.hotmail.com/
http://www.rocketmail.com/
http://mail.yahoo.com/

Exception Catagories:
Allowed by U-certificate and PG:

Sites are Allowed if they meet they meet one or more of the following criteria. The categories below are used to allow access to sites that may be otherwiseblocked by one of the other categories above.

Education
Material under another category (such as Sex, Nudity, or Violence) that has educational value (such as classic literature, history, sex education, etc.).

For Kids
Sites that are designed specifically for kids.
http://www.bess.net
http://www.disney.com

History
Material that falls under another category (such as Sex or Violence) that is non-fictional and historically significant.

Medical
Material under another category (such as Nudity or Tasteless/Gross) that relates to the study or practice of medicine.
http://worldmall.com/erf/autopsy.htm
http://fbhc.org/Patients/BetterHealth/BreastCancer/exam.html

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