Filters Block Needed Health Facts

Internet filters in schools and libraries are impeding children's access to helpful health information. While software set to highly restrictive levels blocks 91 percent of online pornography, it also blocks 24 percent of Web sites dealing with health issues. However, filters set to their least restrictive settings only block 1.4 percent of health sites and 87 percent of pornographic sites, says a study by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation called "See No Evil."

"I hope this study will lead schools and libraries to focus on how their filters are configured," says Vicky Rideout of the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Foundation researchers tested six of the most popular Internet-filtering products in schools and public libraries—SmartFilter, 8e6, Websense, CyberPatrol, Symantec, and N2H2's Bess—as well as America Online's Parental Controls, often used by parents at home. Each filter was set to varying degrees of restriction, with the most restrictive blocking sites dealing with topics such as tobacco and jokes. Under each setting, researchers searched for a predetermined list of health information terms, among them "condom," "safe sex," "ecstasy," "jock itch," "gay," and "lesbian." Using these terms, the most commonly searched health-related topics among teenagers, the filters blocked a quarter of Web sites dealing with legitimate health issues.

The American Library Association's Washington office director, Emily Sheketoff, says the best way to prevent children's exposure to online pornography is through education, not filters. "This study shows that filters don't work," she says. "If 87 percent of pornographic sites are blocked, that means that 13 percent—about 50,000 sites—aren't."

A summary of the study can be found at www.kff.org/content/2002/20021210a.