Secure central management
Authorised staff can manage site policies and inmate desktops from a secure central location. Inmates cannot circumvent policy, evade monitoring, or access capabilities beyond what staff have explicitly permitted.
PrisonPC is designed to give staff flexibility. Routine tasks and many responses to incidents can be handled remotely, without requiring a cell visit. This reduces workload and avoids placing staff in unnecessarily volatile situations — without replacing the in-person contact that remains central to effective corrections management.
Each desktop can be assigned to a designated inmate or group of inmates, allowing staff to implement rental or privilege systems without requiring physical access to cells.
Enforced curfews
Desktop access is restricted according to a predefined schedule. During curfew periods inmates cannot access the system; access is restored automatically when the curfew lifts.
Individual services (television, printing, web browsing) can have independent curfew schedules applied, giving staff granular control over which capabilities are available at any given time.
Passive discipline
Staff can suspend individual inmate privileges (email, television, web access, and others) directly from the management console, without visiting the cell. Suspensions can be applied to individual inmates or to groups.
Consolidated device
PrisonPC consolidates television, radio, education, email, web access, and entertainment into a single managed unit per cell, replacing the collection of discrete devices that would otherwise need to be individually secured, monitored, and maintained. More on why consolidation matters.
Desktop and software management
From the secure console, staff can broadcast alerts to individual inmates or groups, remotely monitor or control any desktop, and power up, shut down, or entirely disable individual desktops or groups — all without a cell visit where the situation allows it.
PrisonPC runs applications on the local desktop hardware while preventing inmates from accessing the underlying operating system or modifying any software.
PrisonPC puts the power of system management squarely in the hands of staff, allowing them to perform their duties remotely and avoid placing themselves in potentially volatile situations.
Integrated IPTV and media
Free-to-air television and radio content is distributed to inmate desktops, with staff able to block specific programmes or channels that conflict with facility policy. Content can also be cached and time-shifted for scheduled delivery.
Closed-circuit channels
Facilities can broadcast video and audio on internal channels accessible to all or selected inmates. Typical uses include educational content, induction material, time-shifted free-to-air programming, and religious services. Internal channels are particularly valuable in facilities where inmates of minority religions might otherwise face intolerance in communal viewing settings.
“Access [to televisions] can be a strong incentive to good behaviour and regime participation, and can aid order and control by occupying inmates’ time and reducing boredom and tension.”
— NOMS Agency Board, UK Ministry of Justice, March 2012
Media restrictions
Where desktops are equipped with optical drives, inmates can access audio CDs and video DVDs that have been explicitly approved by staff. Unapproved optical media is rejected automatically. All USB storage devices are blocked regardless of content.
Staff are encouraged to use internal IPTV channels for media distribution where possible. This provides greater control, removes the handling of physical media, and eliminates physical media as a potential tradable commodity within the facility.
Filtered web and email
The PrisonPC email service gives staff individual control over each inmate’s correspondence. Each inmate has their own approved addressee list, which staff can configure independently. Addresses can be designated as privileged (delivered without staff review, such as legal representatives) or trusted (with attachments permitted, such as education providers). All other correspondence is subject to deep content filtering.
Each message — inbound and outbound — passes through the filtering mechanism before delivery. Messages that fail the filter are automatically quarantined for staff review; staff can approve or reject them before delivery.
The filtering mechanism handles the substantial majority of correspondence automatically. All non-privileged correspondence is archived regardless of filter outcome, giving staff full visibility of inmate communications at any time — not just those flagged for attention.
Managed email also significantly reduces the volume of postal mail that staff must manually review.
Web access
Inmates can be selectively granted access to a limited list of approved websites, such as distance education providers or legal resources. Attempts to access unapproved sites are blocked and logged.
Print management
All documents printed by inmates are watermarked with the identity of the inmate who printed them, regardless of the application used. Electronic copies are retained automatically in secure storage, inaccessible to inmates, for staff review.
Content delivery
PrisonPC supports the secure delivery of educational content from both local providers and online sources. Applications covering basic literacy and numeracy through to vocational and tertiary programmes can be offered through the platform, giving inmates access to the tools they need for meaningful reintegration and employment on release.