Monitoring software

[sassie05]

Anyone familiar with these monitoring software applications? From Spectorsoft: http://www.spectorsoft.com/
I’m interested in Spector Pro 5.0 or eBlaster.

Are these malicious in any way?

If you use one, please give me your opinion.
Thanks in advance.

[Starman*]

Any spy program could be malicioius. Depends who's using it and why.

You may have read this Spector review (http://www.interhack.net/pubs/spector/) already. It's old but does not paint the best picture.

Starman*

[sassie05]

Thanks Starman*,
I had not seen this review and it does hit on the points I was wondering about.
I can't help but think the information uploaded to Spectorsoft is more than just licensing or some sort of DRM!!!

[Starman*]

I think one can get too caught up in paranoia. Spectorsoft have been around for a few years. If they had been routinely involved in anything criminal, they would have been rumbled by now.

If they keep records of alerts, it could in fact be a good thing (for the public). If they stated that on their features, it would tend to stop people using the software for illegal activities. It would also lose them a lot of business because people don't like being monitored. They don't mind spying on other people but not the reverse. Companies in particular would not entertain exposing proprietary information to any outside organisation.

Recent experience has shown that no matter how honest an organisation is, you just need one bad apple with access to the data, or some idiot employee taking the database home and getting the laptop stolen, to put people in jeopardy.

Starman*

[sassie05]

Yep, that would be me, PARANOID. :o :eek:

I should not worry due to the usage of the software that I need it for. IT would be installed on my 14yo's PC to, yes, be nosy (gotta face the facts), but more importantly to safeguard my child from predators. I do not want to restrict my child from chat rooms and having fun surfing.

So, since this would not be on my PC I have nothing to be paranoid about! lol :D

Once again thanks for your comments and somewhat easing my paranoia! ;)

[Starman*]

If you have deep paranoia(!), something like Net Nanny might be a better bet unless your kid is an expert hacker. Net Nanny is more visible because it will stop access to certain things set by you. It is not an out-and-out spy program, more of a supervisor.

Starman*