WebWatcher is a proprietary computer and mobile device monitoring software developed by Awareness Technologies. WebWatcher is compatible with

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...

, Android,

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

ChromeOS ChromeOS, sometimes stylized as chromeOS and formerly styled as Chrome OS, is a Linux-based operating system designed by Google. It is derived from the open-source ChromiumOS and uses the Google Chrome web browser as its principal user interfac ...

and

macOS macOS (; previously OS X and originally Mac OS X) is a Unix operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc. since 2001. It is the primary operating system for Apple's Mac computers. Within the market of desktop and lapt ...

operating systems. WebWatcher Mobile records

text messages Text messaging, or texting, is the act of composing and sending electronic messages, typically consisting of alphabetic and numeric characters, between two or more users of mobile devices, desktops/ laptops, or another type of compatible comput ...

, call logs, web history, photos, and GPS. WebWatcher for PC and Mac features include

email Electronic mail (email or e-mail) is a method of exchanging messages ("mail") between people using electronic devices. Email was thus conceived as the electronic ( digital) version of, or counterpart to, mail, at a time when "mail" meant ...

Instant Message Instant messaging (IM) technology is a type of online chat allowing real-time text transmission over the Internet or another computer network. Messages are typically transmitted between two or more parties, when each user inputs text and trigge ...

monitoring,

keystroke logging Keystroke logging, often referred to as keylogging or keyboard capturing, is the action of recording (logging) the keys struck on a keyboard, typically covertly, so that a person using the keyboard is unaware that their actions are being monitored ...

, web content filtering and monitoring, and screenshot monitoring. Critics have referred to WebWatcher and other similar pieces of software as "stalkerware".

History

WebWatcher was developed in 2002 initially for uses of

counter-terrorism Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...

for Windows PCs. The software is now used predominantly by parents to monitor their children's online activities and by employers to monitor the activities of their workers. In 2010, a version of the software was released for BlackBerry and Android devices. In 2012, WebWatcher for Mac was released. WebWatcher for iOS was released in 2014.

Reception and criticism

WebWatcher received the

PC Magazine ''PC Magazine'' (shortened as ''PCMag'') is an American computer magazine published by Ziff Davis. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009. Publication of online editions started in late 1994 and have continued to the present d ...

editors' choice award in a 2011 review of Parental Control & Monitoring software. In the article, WebWatcher was referred to as "Heavy-handed" saying: "if you find it necessary to track a child who's engaging in risky activities, WebWatcher will record every detail and even send you instant notification when it encounters certain words." Also,

About.com Dotdash Meredith (formerly About.com) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, home, food, finance, tech, beauty, ...

readers named WebWatcher as the "Best

Internet Safety Internet safety or online safety or cyber safety and E-Safety is trying to be safe on the internet and is the act of maximizing a user's awareness of personal safety and security risks to private information and property associated with using the i ...

Tool" as part of its 2011 Readers' Choice Awards. Critics have noted that since the software runs stealth on a device, there is an opportunity for the software to be installed illegally. In 2020, TechCrunch and other media outlets described WebWatcher as "stalkerware". Shortly thereafter, Google removed advertisements for WebWatcher from its search results.

References

{{reflist, 2 2002 software Proprietary cross-platform software Cross-platform software Windows software MacOS software BlackBerry software C++ software Android (operating system) software Content-control software Stalkerware