Internet Filter

Once again, a new update of Mobicip's Safe Browser is now available on the App Store. So what is new in this version? This is an incremental update with a mix of bug-fixes and some new features listed below:

Login Problem Fixed

About a dozen users had run into a rather innocuous bug that was forcing parents to login again. 

It was, strangely enough, tied to the orientation of the device at the moment you close a tab or window inside the Mobicip Safe Browser. It was causing associated data like bookmarks and login information to be erased. We are relieved that the issue is now fixed.

Forward Links by Email

You can now touch the Bookmarks icon and send the current website as a link via email. This is a Safari Mobile feature that has been added to Mobicip's Safe Browser.

Better Handling of Web Forms

A handful of users had reported that certain school and bank websites were not being handled correctly. This has now been fixed, bringing Mobicip's browser closer to Safari in functionality compared to most other browsers on the App Store.

Other Bug Fixes

A few other bug fixes for crashes in corner cases have been included in this update. 

Download

As usual the update is free for anyone who has downloaded Mobicip before from the App Store. Simply use the same iTunes account that you used to download the app before, and you will not be charged for the repurchase.

In summary, this is a minor update in terms of new features, but a major update in terms of bug fixes and improved reliability. Download the update now, try it and let us know what you think.

Wow! This was a Thanksgiving surprise for Mobicip!

It is certainly an honor to be recognized, especially when it is unexpected. Thank you iPhone Apps Plus team. See the original article and review here. 

To the thousands of Mobicip parents and users out there, thank you very much for choosing Mobicip and telling your friends about it, not to mention your continued support and feedback.

Mobicip crew

The iPhone Mom is a popular app review blog run by a real iPhone Mom. The blog was featured recently in ABC News and Tech Crunch and has a big fan following.

The iPhone Mom has published an excellent review of the Mobicip Safe Browser and Premium parental control service. Excerpts below. Read the full article here.

I’m impressed with what they’ve done and the resources they’re using to filter out all the icky stuff. Plus, they’ve done it in a way that doesn’t really slow down the internet access. When I was browsing and using Mobicip I didn’t find much of a noticeable delay in the internet speed.

The app comes with preset bookmarks and the kids can also add their own. They’ll be able to create and use bookmark folders just like you do in Safari. The Google search is also still present at the top of the screen, only when they use it in Mobicip it’s subject to their search restrictions.  I was surprised to find that it offers search suggestions. I tried a search for Hannah Montana and by the time I’d typed in Hannah it had pulled up a list of suggestions for what I might be searching for. Another really cool feature is the ability to use multiple tabs, just like in Safari. The iPhone’s copy/paste feature will also work.

About the Premium service.

The user interface on the parental account is extremely straightforward and user friendly. Exactly what I needed. I haven’t the faintest idea how all the technical voodoo works to block/allow websites so I’m grateful they’ve kept the parental account features simple.

In conclusion

The icky possibilities of the internet are endless and if Santa manages to put an iPod Touch on his sleigh for my kids this will be one of the first apps that I install.

Thanks iPhone Mom, for an excellent and thorough review!

We are happy to announce that the latest version (2.1.0) of Mobicip Safe Browser for iPhone and iPod Touch has been approved by Apple and is now available on the App Store. This is a major update and we have worked hard to make this version clean and stable. The new version has several new features, from the superficial to the internals.

New Icon - Believe it or not, this was the top requested change from parents. Older kids found the icon with smiley faces patronizing, while younger kids loved the eye candy. So we agonized over a replacement icon and finally settled on a generic one. Hope everyone likes it this time.

Tabs / Windows - Anyone who has used Safari Mobile would have grown to love the tabs or windows. Now you can have multiple tabs open at your fingertips and switch between them with ease. Sites like Google News will automatically launch in another tab, hold down any link to open it in a new tab, and you can always use the New Tab button to open one.

Save Images - Press and hold any image and these buttons should pop up, allowing you to copy the image and paste it elsewhere or email it. 

Persistent Cookies - Login at your favorite websites and the Mobicip browser will remember the login information between sessions so you don't have to login again. 

Copy & Paste - Have fun with the new copy and paste features in iPhone OS 3.0 within the Mobicip browser. Copy links from emails and paste it in the Mobicip Browser's URL bar. Select and copy content, and paste it in your email.

Blazing Performance - Ignoring all the features, the most valuable update in this version is subtle and will be perceived rather than seen. The Mobicip browser should now be as fast, if not faster, than Safari Mobile in terms of speed.

Please update the app and let us know what you think. Your feedback helps shape our solution. Thanks especially to the beta users, especially Dylan and Eric, for your enthusiastic feedback and participation.

Blurb from an article written by Mobicip CEO , Suren Ramasubbu, for Huffington Post:

Internet filtering and parental control products may not be preferred by every parent. Many parents choose to simply discuss appropriate usage with their children; many others use Internet filtering products as training wheels until they feel confident. While the decision makers who purchase and setup the software are parents or school administrators, the actual end users whose browsing behavior is being monitored are children -- a highly targeted demographic for marketers and companies that want to sell products to them.

At Mobicip.com, a parental control and Internet filtering service for the iPhone and iPod Touch, we have stayed away from using data on our user behavior for any purpose, mainly due to the arguably ethical and potential PR issues associated with it. This is not a new controversy.

To read the entire article, click here.

Jennifer Martinez at GigaOm comments on a study conducted by MTV's Nickelodeon. You can find the original article here, but here is an excerpt. We feel good that we are solving an important problem that parents worry about!

While most kids are using their parents’ iPhones or iPod touches at home, parents are also forking them over while they’re waiting for appointments or sitting in the car. More often than not, kids are using them to play games — a usage for which parents, the study found, are “willing or eager” to pay for. We wonder whether this will cut into the market share of handheld video game devices, such as Nintendo’s DS or Sony’s PSP. More importantly, what’s the appropriate age at which to buy your kids an iPhone or iPod touch of their own? Parents, please weigh in with your thoughts.

Some other interesting facts from the study:

• A whopping 98 percent of parents find the iPod touch kid-friendly, while 84 percent said the same for the iPhone.

• Most parents supervise their kids’ use of the iPod touch and iPhone.

• Parents’ biggest concern with their kids using the iPhone or iPod touch is they may view “inappropriate or unsafe content.”

 Parents, Mobicip has a clean and reliable solution that you should definitely try out.

In response to popular demand from parents, we are happy to announce the rollout of YouTube filtering for the iPhone and iPod Touch. It is available right now for Mobicip.com Premium users, and will be available at High School level for others in a couple of days.

UPDATE: We found that this feature doesn't really allow filtered access to YouTube. It turns out that the only mechanism to play YouTube videos is through the YouTube application itself. So if the YouTube app is disabled (following the instructions below), and Mobicip provides filtered access to YouTube.com, none of the videos will be playable. We are working on finding a workaround for this, in case Apple doesn't support Flash soon. Please bear with us as we find a solution that works. Thanks for your patience.

Simply disable the default YouTube application using the Restrictions feature, setup Mobicip Safe Browser as the default method to access YouTube, and unblock the YouTube category (Premium users only).

Disable YouTube on iPhone or iPod Touch

• From the home screen, select Settings > General.

• Select Restrictions

• Enter a 4-digit passcode. Make sure you remember this passcode, in case you need to change these settings later on.

• You will see the restrictions screen. Set Safari, YouTube, and Installing Apps to OFF on this screen.

Setup Mobicip Safe Browser

Mobicip™ offers a best-selling alternate browser for Safari that enables parental controls on your child's iPhone or iPod Touch. It is simple to setup and works anytime anywhere! The Mobicip Safe Browser is protected by a mobicip.com account setup by the parent. 

• From the home screen on the device, touch the App Store icon.

• Touch the search tab, and search for "mobicip"

• Select the Mobicip Safe Browser from the search results.

• Touch the price button, it will turn into BUY NOW. Touch this button and enter your iTunes username and password.

NOTE: Please make sure you purchase the app from the iTunes account that will be synced with the device. Your child may have a separate iTunes account to which the device is synced. Please purchase through that account instead of yours. If you have already purchased the app from your account, call iTunes Customer Support and they can cancel and refund the purchase.

• One purchased, the app will be installed on your screen.

• When installation is done, touch the Mobicip icon to launch the app.

• If you don't have a Mobicip.com account already, touch the Create New Account button.

• Once the account is created, login into the app. You should see the browser open up like this.

Allow YouTube Category using Mobicip.com Premium

If you haven't already, visit www.mobicip.com from your PC to upgrade to the Mobicip.com Premium web application. Mobicip.com Premium is a web-based parental control application that can be accessed from any browser. The Premium application allows you to setup custom Internet filtering settings and policy, and monitor Internet usage on the iPhone and iPod Touch that uses Mobicip as the primary browser.

To allow the YouTube category, select Settings > Categories > Entertainment. Uncheck YouTube and save the settings.

Your child can now access YouTube only through Mobicip Safe Browser, and YouTube in general will be accessible, but inappropriate content alone will be blocked. We would love to hear your feedback on this feature. Please post your thoughts and comments on the forum or contact us.

One of our most critical users has reviewed our latest update and posted his thoughts on iTunes. Here is an excerpt.

I just submitted this review to the iTunes store.  Nice work.

5 Stars

---------------

This update is a GREAT IMPROVEMENT!  I had given the first version a harsh one star review because the application did not do a good job blocking image searching on the various image search engines.  But after playing with this new application for several hours, I am impressed.  It is by far the best content filtering browser for the iphone.  It does the best job out of the box.  There are still a few things on my wish list, but it is worth 5 stars just like it is.

 

Thank you very much Mr. Bobo. We are indeed glad to hear your kind comments. You keep us on our toes and we will continue to strive hard to live up to your expectations.

Mobicip Team