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iShield Plus
Frequently Asked Questions
Image Recognition Software to Filter Pornography
iShield™ Plus - The perfect companion to any Internet Filtering Service. iShield is revolutionary software designed to recognize pornography by the
image. Don't rely on filters only. Start using iShield Plus today. Begin Your 14-day Free Trial Now
No Annual Fees • Free Updates
What does iShield do?
Image Blocking - iShield can block any porn image displayed in Internet
Explorer with a customized replacement image.
URL Logging - iShield records the URLs of any web-pages browsed that it has determined to be pornographic. The iShield administrator can view a log of such these pages.
Popup Warning - iShield can trigger a warning message when it detects a web page which contains pornographic material, so as to let the end-user know that the incident has been captured.
How is iShield different from URL Filtering Software?
URL filters only restrict access to known pornographic web sites and so are dependent on the list of known web-sites being up to date. This dependency is important since there are in the region of 100,000 new pornographic web-pages being placed on the Internet each day. iShield does not use any lists of known pornographic websites, instead it analyses each web-page as it is loaded finds pornographic images and then blocks them.
What's so special about iShield?
It's the ONLY software capable or monitoring what's going on within the browser.
How does iShield detect explicit images?
iShield's locates areas of interest in each image using color-analysis. Next a series of techniques are applied, namely contrast normalization, skin-color analysis, texture-analysis, edge-detection, blob-detection, shape analysis, brightness-flow analysis and face detection. The
results of these image processing techniques are fed into a neural network to make a decision on the image. Next the text is recovered from the web-page and analyzed. The results of the text-analysis and image-analysis are combined to make an overall decision. See How It Works.
What does iShield do when it detects explicit images?
When iShield detects suspect material being displayed on a browser it automatically records the event in a log file that can be reviewed by the administrator. Next, if the image blocking mode is switched on, then iShield replaces pornographic images with a non-pornographic one.
Can I customize iShield's protection level?
iShield has a control panel accessible via a password. This control panel
allows the administrator to i) turn iShield's detection engine on and off; ii) select the degree of pornography about which an image will be blocked; iii) select which of the three modes of operation, namely: Active Block, Active Warn and Passive Mode is active; iv) view the report log containing the URLs of pornographic web-pages visited by the end-user; and v) change the administrator password. Note that in the first mode of operation, the Active Block mode, images are replaced with a
non-pornographic image. In the second mode, Active Warn mode, a message box pops-up when pornography is detected to warn the user that they are being monitored. In the third mode, the Passive Mode, the incidences of pornography are recorded but no action is taken to warn the end-user or block any images.
Will iShield block images that are not pornographic?
Whilst iShield's detection engine is designed to reduce the risk of false triggers, occasionally
iShield will block non-explicit images in part due to the inherent subjectivity of what constitutes pornography. To alleviate this problem the pornographic level above which images are block can be manually adjusted from iShield's control panel.
We've already got a firewall …
Firewalls are perfect for spying external access to your systems but don't and can't control, monitor and report what is being viewed using the web-browser.
Do I have to take out my existing blocking software?
No, we don't encourage this. Your existing software provides a basic level of protection. Our software adds a much higher degree of monitoring and control - within the web-browser itself.
Has iShield received any Awards for Excellence?
Yes, iShield is recommended by PC Magazine as one of three top software tools to help parents protect their children from Internet pornography.
Will iShield interfere with any other programs I have installed?
No, iShield does not interfere with any other programs. iShield simply analyzes information before it is displayed in your Internet browser.
Will I see a slow down in my computers performance?
No, iShield only operates when you are browsing the Internet. You may see a slight hesitation when a web page loads only if there are many graphics on the page.
Can iShield protect against video?
Not at this time, but we are working on it. iShield may prevent you from reaching video sites.
Will iShield work for dial-up, cable, LAN, DSL, and wireless connections?
Yes, the type of Internet connection you have does not matter.
Are there any other fees?
No, there are no additional monthly or yearly fees and all upgrades are free.
What is your Privacy Policy? What information do you gather?
We collect the
following information: License Key, Order Number, the email address that is entered as part of the registration process, PC Name (used for authentication) and IP address.
Can I turn off iShield™ Plus?
You can turn off iShield™ Plus by selecting the Disable option in the Detection Engine panel within the General tab. Your password is required to make changes in the control panel.
Can I install iShield™ Plus on more than one computer?
The iShield™ Plus license is only valid for one computer. Hence, you will need to purchase an additional license from our online web portals or contact your ISP if you wish to install iShield™ Plus on more than one computer.
What if some pictures, deemed to be acceptable, are blocked by iShield™ Plus?
iShield™ Plus may occasionally classify an acceptable image as being
pornographic. If this is occurs too frequently then there are a number of actions you can take:
If the blocking of acceptable images occurs within a supported browser when viewing a particular website that you know to be non-pornographic, then you can add that website address to the White List.
If the blocking takes place outside a supported browser, in other words the whole screen gets blocked, then you can reduce the sensitivity of iShield™ Plus to pornographic images by
changing the detection settings.
If the above does not help and you are running iShield™ Plus in Active Mode, you may need to switch to Passive Mode in which iShield™ Plus just logs suspected incidences of pornography without blocking anything.
What if some pornographic pictures are not blocked by iShield™ Plus?
If no pornographic pictures at all are being blocked by iShield™ Plus then please check that the iShield™ Plus is Enabled and that
you are running iShield™ Plus in Active Mode.
For most users, the default iShield™ Plus settings should be sufficient to provide the protection against pornographic content whilst minimizing the number of false triggers. However, if you need a greater protection again pornography then you may need to tailor the detection settings to match your individual requirements.
What if iShield™ Plus reduces the PC's response time?
If
iShield™ Plus is causing your PC to run at a noticeably slower speed then it is possible that the processor is spending too much time monitoring the PC for pornographic content. To reduce the time the processor spends monitoring the PC decrease the Priority Boost setting.
What if no thumbnail images are displayed in the Report Log?
The messages "Logged Screen" and "Locked Screen" in the Report Log relate to incidences of suspected
pornographic content. If no thumbnail image is displayed when such an incident is selected then one of two things might have occurred. Either the thumbnails have been removed manually or iShield™ Plus was unable to save the thumbnail to the hard disk. If you suspect it is the latter, then try freeing some space on your hard disk or clear the Report Log if you have a large number of incidences in the log.
How often should I check the iShield™ Plus Report Log?
It is recommended that you check the Report Log once a week to monitor iShield™ Plus activity. In Passive Mode the PC is not locked upon detection of a suspect image and so your only method for finding out whether users have been viewing pornographic images is to regularly check the Report Log for triggers. Even in Active Mode the Report Log should be regularly checked to ensure that a user has not attempted to access the iShield™ Plus control panel by guessing your password
(Incorrect PC password error). |
