Those that work on a blacklist/whitelist structure will always fail because so many new sites appear every single day. The problems with web filters is they can *never* find the correct balance between blocking “bad” content and allowing legitimate sites. That’s really the bottom line: you can’t expect filters to replace parenting. The NYT does deserve some credit, though, for recommending that parents take an active role with their kids in helping them determine for themselves what’s inappropriate viewing material on YouTube. The company’s weak defense of its poor filters seems more like a shrug of the shoulders than anything, creating an impression that the filters are there for appearances and little else. The latest example comes from The New York Times, which has discovered that YouTube’s Safety Mode filters don’t really work at all.

Given the long history of filter failures, it’s a little surprising to see people who seem shocked that filters don’t work. Despite claims from politicians and other groups, they simply aren’t effective, and often end up blocking desirable content while letting undesirable stuff flow through. But there’s just one small problem with filters: they don’t work. Web filters are seen by lots of people as some sort of silver bullet for so many of the ills they see on the internet, whether it’s stopping piracy or blocking child porn or just “cleaning up the internet” in general. Mon, Apr 19th 2010 02:19am - Carlo Longino

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