F-Secure Total Internet Security – Review

Being online these days is the norm and as a blogger and IT worker, I’m always switched on whether it’s my work pc, home laptop, tablet or phone. We all are these days, aren’t we? However, it’s not just us adults, our kids are the same. Most have grown up being able to unlock their parents or sibling’s tablets before they can even talk properly. I know my youngest was able to. I’m not wrong though am I? With all the plethora of sites, resources and videos at our fingertips, as a parent, I feel we need to make sure what our children have access to are suitable for their age. Not only that, I don’t want them being on their tablets all the time. I want to feel that, as a parent, I have some sort of control. Let them make their own decisions, but knowing it’s safe and when you allow. This is where F-Secure Total Internet Security comes in. Instead of not allowing your child to go online in the view that it can be dangerous, F-Secure Total allows you to set boundaries. It is simple and easy with F-Secure Total’s interface. Discuss it with your family, so they feel included. You can set limits, manage content and locate your children’s devices remotely. Guide them through the world wide web. It can guide those of us, who aren’t quite as online savvy as we’d like. We didn’t grow up using technology they way our kids have. Discussing limits and rules with your children, encourages them to be open with you, which will help as they get older and may encounter things they are unsure of. Teaching them life skills.

Let’s show you how to do it. Download F-Secure Total Internet Security to get you started, you can try it for free. Run it and set it up on your laptop or computer. Login to F-Secure online portal and add your device.

Select the device you want to set up the details for. F-Secure covers computers, tablets and phones. Both windows, macs, Android, Microsoft and Apple devices.

Set time limits for your device and content filtering. It is intuitive to set up. Then, select an email address.  Once the email arrives it’ll redirect you to a webpage (or in this case an app).

One brief stumbling block we encountered was that we are using restrictions already on the iPads. You need to allow explicit content for some reason to download the app.

Once it’s installed you can choose the length of web time is allowed per day (weekdays and weekend).  You then get content control.

After this, you are encouraged to Disable Safari and also Install apps (although we have family restriction).  You then browse using the F-secure browser rather than your current one. This is how it works to allow you to control. It takes away the current way you use it, but if it’s a new device there will be no issues. It’s an adjustment for the greater good to allow the settings to take effect.

We have been discussing this as a family and why we want to put restrictions in place. They understand why we want this in place and would rather they weren’t exposed to things they shouldn’t be. The time restrictions, we are still working on some common ground. It’s trial and error for a few weeks to see what works. It is good that you can set it for each child and not all have to be the same. Older children may need some more time than younger ones with homework, etc.

F-Secure includes Virus protection, a must for all computers and laptops. Working in IT, I’m still amazed at users who have nothing. F-secure Total Internet Security covers internet browsing with DeepGuard, Browsing Protection and a Firewall, keeping your online banking safe. If you find it’s blocking sites you need access too, in the tools section, you can add web addresses to whitelists and blacklists so it is quite easy to manage what you need.

The last feature is one I’ve not tried but comes bundled in with the Total Security. The Freedome VPN you have 28 possible locations to choose from which includes locations from Europe, USA, Australia and Asia. This would allow you to still watch UK Netflix, etc if travelling abroad or vice versa, etc. It looks straightforward to use and has some browser protection built in.

At £79.99 per year, F-Secure Total Internet Security covers up to 3 devices. Worried about losing your phone? The F-Secure Total allows you to locate your device and if you lose it, you can wipe it so no-one can get your information from it. The family protection that is built in, allows you to protect and limit your children from the internet. If they are getting a new tablet, phone or laptop for Christmas, you might want to purchase F-Secure Total Internet Security for your own piece of mind as well as foraging new online skills for life.

Do you use F-Secure Total Internet Security or something similar?

Disclaimer:- This post is done in collaboration with F-Secure, but all words and thoughts are my own.