Need Help with Choosing Internet Monitoring Software


Still_Small_Voice
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Hello all.  I want to be able to monitor all Internet activity that is going into my router and to the Internet.  I want something that logs all websites visited that I can easily review on a weekly basis.  In experience I have come to realize that I really want to have this in my household.  Unmonitored Internet access is not something I want anymore.  Are there any suggestions anyone can give me on a cheap effective solution for software that would do this?  I would prefer to not rent my software every month or year.  (Software rental is the route most companies are going with their applications and I hate it.)  I would prefer to just pay once and be done with it for years.  Does anyone have experience with programs that do this that are good and what is the cost I can expect?

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Hmm, I am NOT someone who knows all about technology.

On my modem/router (whatever they are called, it is the item the internet is plugged into and then we connect our computer to) it records any devices that are connected or were connected to it and where they went (aka, which websites they went to).  It should be in the modem history.

If you have the modem passworded, then the admin should be the only one that can open it up and look at this.  However, all that information should be on the router already.

With some you can also set parental controls to block certain words, websites, or other items from your internet.

Unsure if this is what you are looking for.

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34 minutes ago, Still_Small_Voice said:

I need to be able to review what websites my children visit.  I am not much into filters as they tend to block websites with false positives that are not bad.

I would do the filters anyway - most of them allow you to set a tolerance level.  And I'd do google's safe mode, and whatever else I could find.

But JJ is right - your modem / router should have this feature - along with access controls (including day of week and time of day), service blocking, and website blocking.  Mine requires that logging be enabled before it starts keeping them.

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Tried for a few days using multiple browsers and operating systems to get into my router to access the logs.  I cannot log in.  I think I need some other third party software that is more reliable.  I currently have Centurylink as my Internet Service Provider.  I do not like them but I hate and detest Comcast and will avoid them at all costs.

Anyone have any suggestions of software that will store a log of every website visited using my router?

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36 minutes ago, Still_Small_Voice said:

I currently have Centurylink as my Internet Service Provider.

So do I.  The router came with an IP, which you type into a browser on any connected device, and it brings up a login screen.  The login information came on a sticker in the router packaging.  You can change the password.

Don't know if that helps, but there it is...

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26 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

I'd also like something like this, and my router doesn't track/report website usage.

You don't have a "utilities" (or similar) option in the router / modem interface (usually a web interface), with something akin to "history" or "web activity log"?  (Just checking - sometimes they hide these features well in obscure corners of the app.)

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5 minutes ago, zil said:

You don't have a "utilities" (or similar) option in the router / modem interface (usually a web interface), with something akin to "history" or "web activity log"?

That is correct.  I can see which device is attached at any given moment, block or assign custom filtering levels to each, get a running total of total bandwidth used - but no "here's the places everyone is going".

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12 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

That is correct.  I can see which device is attached at any given moment, block or assign custom filtering levels to each, get a running total of total bandwidth used - but no "here's the places everyone is going".

Bummer.  Logging is a pretty easy feature to add, so it's kinda surprising the router/modem manufacturer didn't include it.

I can't think of software that you can use independent of the router (or even add to the router) to get this kind of logging - you would need a separate bit of hardware between your router and all your devices (or between your router and internet connection), and that's not the easiest thing to do.  Otherwise, you'd have to have secure software on every device (and that's even harder when you have a variety of devices and OSs).

OK, FWIW, if one wanted to go all serious, this article has what seems like a viable option to me.  (The Wireshark app it mentions is used sometimes where I work - helps troubleshoot which server / service dropped the ball, so to speak)

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Hmm.  If all your devices are wireless, you could turn off your router/modem's wireless feature and buy a separate wireless access point (WAP), which includes a logging feature.  Hook this to your router/modem by cable, connect all your devices to it, and start logging.

Of course, if someone has the option to go in and use a network cable to connect straight to the router/modem, you won't be logging their activity, but you can log everything going through the separate WAP.

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Hmm.  Actually, every end-user / home WAP I've ever met included a switch (around 5 ports), so you could put any wired devices in that too, and then you just have to somehow keep anyone from connecting to the router/modem (or from logging into it to turn on its wireless).

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@Still_Small_Voice my wife and I use Qustodio and we like it. It won’t (and I do t know that any could) allow you to monitor what your family members are viewing on phone apps like Instagram or Twitter, but you can both monitor and choose what content you want your family viewing.

There is a yearly fee though, but it is worth it.

https://www.qustodio.com/en/

Edited by Fether
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1 hour ago, Fether said:

@Still_Small_Voice my wife and I use Qustodio and we like it. It won’t (and I do t know that any could) allow you to monitor what your family members are viewing on phone apps like Instagram or Twitter, but you can both monitor and choose what content you want your family viewing.

There is a yearly fee though, but it is worth it.

https://www.qustodio.com/en/

There's an app that you can get on your phone (my son knows how to do this) which if you download to your children's phones can monitor what and where they are going and what they have looked at.  Unfortunately my son is the one who knows the technology stuff so I can't really help you.  He also put a thing where I can keep track of where my kids are anytime I want (well, where their phones are as long as their phones are on).  Normally use it when they are coming to visit.

It has some funny things occasionally where it will show them several feet off the highway or road (common sense tells you that they are not driving 70 mph off the side of the highway, but it will appear that way on this app occasionally.

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So does Qustodio have to be installed in whatever operating system you are using it on if you only wish to monitor all website visits on your router?  If a device did not have Qustodio software installed on it could you monitor the Internet activity on that device if it was using your router in your house?

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58 minutes ago, Still_Small_Voice said:

So does Qustodio have to be installed in whatever operating system you are using it on if you only wish to monitor all website visits on your router?  If a device did not have Qustodio software installed on it could you monitor the Internet activity on that device if it was using your router in your house?

Yes, it has to be installed. No, it cannot monitor a device on which it isn't installed. Find your router login, or check out that hacker link I posted.

ETA: Or use your router strictly as a router and get a WAP (that has logging) to put between it and your devices - an end-user WAP is pretty cheap.

Edited by zil
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  • 3 weeks later...

As suggestions
Software to block Web Sites:

Blue Coat K9 Web Protection
http://www1.k9webprotection.com/

Effective August 1, 2016, Blue Coat Systems, Inc. was acquired by Symantec Corporation.

Blue Coat K9 Web Protection (Protect Children Info)
http://www1.k9webprotection.com/aboutk9/protect-my-children

Service is free. Software is free. Requires minimal information registration to get license (one license per email address) to connect to their servers. Installs as a service on individual computers. Requires password to access settings and uninstall. Will block predefined web access by category (software and user selection) and selected user URL(s). The software will also set Google Safe Search as a setting (along with yahoo.com and others), among a selection of search block settings. There is an administrative bypass requiring the password as well. Needs to be installed on each computer to use. This application will block everything that accesses the internet based on its settings. The Android version has been discontinued.

I have used it for years. I have found that it can be defeated with some search engines, like duckduckgo.com. These URLs can be black listed in the settings, much like a HOSTS file.

Software to monitor accessed web sites:

Information about Microsoft Network Monitor
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/933741/information-about-network-monitor-3

Microsoft Network Monitor Download
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/4865

This software is great and simply monitors everything that happens on the network. Every connection that occurs on the network. All connected computers are logged (default size for log file is 20MB, can be adjusted). It does have filters for monitoring purposes. It doesn't block network access. The feed back is detailed and some what technical. There is a learning curve with this kind of monitoring software.

Hope this helps.

Edited by speakzeazy
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