Editing Parental controls (section)

==Bypassing parental controls==

* If the filtering software is located locally within the computer, all Internet software can be easily bypassed by booting up the computer in question from alternative media, with an alternative operating system or (on [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]) in [[Safe Mode]]. However, if the computer's [[BIOS]] is configured to disallow booting from removable media, and if changes to the BIOS are prohibited without proper authentication, then booting into an alternative operating system is not available without circumventing BIOS security by partially disassembling the computer and resetting BIOS configuration using a button or jumper, or removing and replacing the internal button cell battery.<ref>{{cite web|title=How to Bypass the Parental Control Time Limits in Windows 7/Vista/XP|url=http://www.zimbio.com/Password+Recovery+Software/articles/Xv5Q3c1x3wZ/How+Bypass+Parental+Control+Time+Limits+Windows|access-date=6 September 2012}}</ref>
* Using external proxy servers or other servers. The user sends requests to the external server which retrieves content on the user's behalf. Filtering software may then never be able to know which URLs the user is accessing, as all communications are with the one external server and filtering software never sees any communications with the web servers from which content really originated. To counter this, filtering software may also block access to popular proxies. Additionally, filtering systems which only permit access to a set of allowed URLs (whitelisting) will not permit access anything outside this list, including proxy servers.
* Resetting passwords using exploits
* Modifying the software's files{{citation needed|date=June 2013}}
* [[Brute-force attack]]s on software passwords<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://hackaday.com/2013/07/06/brute-force-attack-xbox-360-parental-controls/|title = Brute force attack Xbox 360 parental controls|date = 6 July 2014|access-date = 9 August 2014|website = Hack A Day|publisher = Hackaday|last = Szczys|first = Mike}}</ref>

<!-- NOTE: Following is factual information, and does not endorse any single product. Pleased do not remove/censor on the basis of being a sales pitch. I had listed three directly competing references, that I have absolutely no association with. I now removed any specific reference to products that implement 'enforce safe search.' This is critically relevant and important information concerning a significant area of parental controls, that I carefully researched and am sincerely summarizing as a public service. Why is it ok to list commercial OS and video game systems that have parental controls, but not list routers that support 'enforce safe search'? -->
* 'Incognito/InPrivate' modes with the 'image' tab: Users, parental control software, and parental control routers may use 'safe search' ([[SafeSearch]]) to enforce filtering at most major search engines. However, in most browsers a user may select 'Incognito' or 'InPrivate' browsing, enter search terms for content, and select the 'image' tab to effectively bypass 'safe search' and many parental control filters. See below for router based considerations and solutions.

Filtering that occurs outside of the individuals computer (such as at the router) cannot be bypassed using the above methods (except for 'Incognito/InPrivate' modes). However,
* The major search engines cache and serve content on their own servers. As a result, domain filters such as many third party DNS servers, also fail to filter the 'Incognito/InPrivate' with 'image' tab.
* Most commercially available routers with parental controls do not enforce safe search at the router, and therefore do not filter the 'Incognito/InPrivate' with 'image' tab.