Are you on the lookout for free web filtering and parental control software that you can use on a home or school computer to block access to porn, gambling, social networking or spyware web sites? For most parents, controlling the time children spend on the Internet and the content they view are a real necessity to ensure a safe and clean browsing experience. In this article, I’ll talk about two popular parental control programs.
The first one is Bluecoat’s K9 Web Protection, a very easy to use Internet and Content filtering solution for home use. The technology is based off their enterprise filtering technology used by Fortune 500 companies across the world. K9 basically divides web sites on the Internet into 55 categories based on the content of the site. You can configure which categories you want to allow and which you want to block.
K9 is also always up-to-date because it accesses Blue Coat’s large online database of over 8 million web sites with ratings. This service-based type of filtering means that K9 receives over 50 million requests per day, making it very accurate and very quick to pick up any new inappropriate sites. With the proliferation of porn and spyware sites, it’s essential to use a service that has a constantly updating database.
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If K9 comes across a web site that it does not have in its database, it uses its patent-pending dynamic real-time rating technology (DRTR) to determine the category and rating of the web site using statistical analysis and artificial intelligence algorithms. According to the site, the technology is really good at blocking porn and adult-related web sites.
Finally, since this was taken from a enterprise product, K9 uses high-performance caching technology to ensure that web pages load as quickly as possible while keeping you safe at the same time.
To get started with K9, click on Get K9 Now at the top menu and fill out the information in order to receive a license key. The license key is free. Next, click on Download software on the left menu and install the software. You’ll be asked for the license key during the install. You’ll also be prompted to enter a password for the admin panel and to uninstall the program, so don’t lose the password!
Restart your computer and open K9. From the main page, you can View Internet Activity, change the Setup for blocked categories, or get help.
Click on Setup to choose the level of security appropriate for you. By default, there are about 20 categories blocked including social networking sites like FaceBook, MySpace, etc. If you click on show details, you’ll also get the recommendation for the which setting is appropriate for children of a certain age. For example, High is recommended for kids under 10.
Under setup on the left menu, you can also setup other restrictions such as Time restrictions, specific web site restrictions, blocking effects, keyword blocking, and emailing preferences.
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Blocking effects is an interesting setting in that you can choose to “bark” when a site is blocked, show the admin panel to override a blocked page (useful for yourself), or block all sites if too many sites were blocked in a specific amount of time!
Finally, click on View Internet Activity to get a detailed report of all web sites browsed and which categories they belonged to.
You can easily see which web sites were blocked and at what time by clicking on the red categories. You can do the same for the green categories.
When a site is blocked, you’ll get a short reason why and if you set the option to override, you can enter your password and choose to unblock it permanently or for a certain period of time!
Overall, K9 is a really nice web-based filtering solution that can keep your family computer safe from harmful viruses or spyware and keep kids from accidentally ending up on a really nasty site!
Enjoy!
Have you ever wondered on “Can I block websites on my phone?” Do you feel like your smartphone has turned into a total disaster with unwanted content? If yes, consider yourself as lucky! This is because you can block websites quite easily in all Android, Windows, Blackberry and IOS platforms. The apps and steps discussed in this article will help you block any kind of websites without any hassles or tussles.
How to block internet sites on your phone easily?
(1) Using an Anti-Virus program – Trend Micro’s App
Do you know that simple antivirus programs can help you block websites on your phone? If your cell phone runs on an android platform, this is one of the finest ways by which you can block inappropriate content. This is because the bond between antivirus programs and the android platform is very smooth. A well-known antivirus that helps users block websites in smartphones is “Trend Micro’s Antivirus”. This is a renowned security agency that is responsible for developing and distributing many security applications. The good news about this anti-virus program is that it has an online rating of 4.5/5! This makes “Trend Micro’s” a real market leader and a reliable app for blocking websites on your phone.
Features Offered by Trend Micro
Here is a quick overview on how to block a website on phone through “Trend Micro’s Antivirus”. First of all, you should down the mobile app and install it! Unlike many other security apps, Trend Micro’s has a comprehensive interface and simple options that can be accessed in few split seconds. In the main page (menu), you should navigate to “Safe Surfing”. Selecting “Safe Surf” will take you to a collection of controls that will let you fine-tune what you access in your Smartphone! To use Trend Micro’s security features, you must set up Safe Surfing and Parental Controls. The account will help you define different levels of protection for children across various age groups. For instance, there are special controls for kids who are between 6 to 12, 13 to 15 and 16 to 20. This makes safe surfing and parental control in Trend Micro’s an interesting venture. To set up and account you should have a valid email account. Once you provide legit details, you will be able to create an account and make use of Trend Micro Apps enticing features. Meanwhile, don’t forget the app’s password. This is because you need the password every time you intend to make a change.
Options in Trend Micro
Now, you should decide on the kind of settings you wish to set! The smartphone application will let you safe surf and customize parental controls. Here is a quick review on how these two options work:
- Using Safe Surfing – Safe Surfing will help you provide balanced protection. With this, you can protect your phone from inappropriate websites without blocking any minor risks. There are three different levels from which you can control your phone’s level of safety (namely, low, normal and high).
Safe Surfing
- Using Parental Controls – Parental Controls in Trend Micro’s mobile app is once against broken into three different levels, namely high, normal and low. If required, you can add websites manually too! Blocked List will give you a quick walk through all the websites blocked by your smartphone. You should add the website’s link and give it a name. Once saved, you will not be able to access this website from your cell phone. When compared against router level blocking, Trend Micro’s makes work easier and much more direct. It doesn’t involve complicated changes or fine tuning of functionalities. You can block porn websites using parent controls.
(2) Altering Your Phone’s Host List
Using ES File Explorer
Moving on, if you wish to know how to block specific websites on your phone, the next few lines will lend you a hand of help! On any android platform, you can use ES File Explorer to control the websites accessed in your Smartphone. The application works by editing the host files. When you block sites, this application redirects the flow. This way, you will not be able to access inappropriate sites even through proxy settings. According to experts, this gives ES File Explorer an edge over conventional website blockers.
How to Block Using ES File Explorer
To block websites through host files, you need a text editor and a file manager. And, here is a quick insight on how to block prom websites in the phone:
- First of all, you should download ES File Explorer from Google App Store. Conversely, install the application and kick start the web filtering process!
- Open ES File Explorer and click on the “/” button. Conversely, you should select “System” and then “etc”.
- Now, tap the “hosts” file, click on 3 vertical dots on bottom of screen, choose Open as –> Text –> ES Note Editor –> Edit.
- In the ES Note Editor, you must redirect the DNS. To accomplish this, you must type a new line: “127.0.0.1 www.<blockedwebsite>.com” (of course, you should not type the quotes and <blockedwebsite> represents the site that has to be blocked). For example, if you want to block www.abc.com, you must type 127.0.0.1 www.abc.com. This will block the web page and redirect you to 127.0.0.1 when someone searches for www.abc.com in your cell phone.
Add host you want to block
- To activate the changed settings, you must reboot your Android device. This will restart your phone with the altered settings and make sure no one can access inappropriate websites on your phone.
(3) Block websites using Parental Flux
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Moving on, there are few other ways by which you can block porn websites in your phone. This includes customized applications like “Parental Flux”. As suggested by its name, this application will help you block websites and certain apps too. Unlike conventional Apps from Google Play Store, this is a browser that will be installed in your Android device. Click “Open” to launch the browser once it is completely downloaded. When you launch the browser for the very first time in your phone, you will be prompted to key in a password. Every time you wish to use this browser, you must type this password. Thus, the browser will be blocked by anyone who is not allowed to access content from your phone.
Working With Parental Flux
The browser will let you select websites and block them! Meanwhile, the fine-tuned browser comprises of filters that will help you block different types of sites. Parental Flux will let you block sites that are classed as “Violence”, “Proxy”, “Adult Content”, “Pornography”, “Gambling” and “Dating”. By selecting the check boxes, all websites and ads with such content will be blocked. Consequently, your phone will be safe to use for little ones!
(4) Using Safe Browser to load Safe Content
Just like “Parental Flux”, you can block sites on your phone through “Safe Browser”. As suggested by its name, “Safe browser” will make sure inappropriate content is not downloaded to your cell phone. Apparently, any content that can prevent you from finishing tasks in your Smartphone will be blocked.
How to Work With Safe Browser?
Here is a quick account on how to block websites on a tablet using “Safe Browser”.
- Download “Safe Browser” from the play store and install it on your cell phone.
- As the browser gets installed on your phone, you should launch it and select the “Menu” button.
- The browser comprises of many options that will help you control and manage content accessed by the Safe Browser. However, to make changes, you must be an “Admin”.
- Log into your admin account using a password! If you are launching Safe Admin for the first time, you must save a password. To ascertain on high levels of security, you must choose a strong password with at least 8 characters and a combination of numbers/letters/symbols. Once the password is chosen, you will log into the browser as an administrator. As mentioned previously, admins have the authority to restrict specific sites.
- To block a website, you must navigate to the URL in the Safe browser and select “More”. Here, you should choose “Add BlackList”. This will add the chosen site into Safe Browser’s Add BlackList. Once a website gets blocked, no one will be allowed to access it! To be more precise, even administrators will not be allowed to access the website.
- Once you have blocked inappropriate websites, you should tap “More” and select “Exit Admin”. As a result, the changes made cannot be undone by anyone other than the admin!
How do I block unwanted websites in Windows Phone
If you have a windows phone, you should follow a different set of steps. Luckily, Windows Phone has simple, comprehensive privacy settings that will fine-tune your browsing experience effortlessly. Here are few basic changes you must do in the browser settings. Firstly, navigate to “Internet Explorer” and click on “More” and navigate to “Settings”. Here you can block websites through three different steps:
- Firstly, you can alter your phone’s “Website Preference”. Namely, you can choose from desktop and mobile version of the site.
- Secondly, you can use the address bar to find/filter websites. This has to be done while you search for websites through the browser.
- Thirdly, you can delete and block sites from history. Always remember that the phone’s settings must be synchronized with the browser and temporary internet files.
Website filtering Using SmartScreen Filter
To alter the phone’s browser settings, you must tap on “Advanced Settings” and choose “SmartScreen Filter”. Technically, this is a special feature that will protect your windows from unsafe websites. If you want to report Microsoft about unsafe websites that are suspicious, you can make use of this “SmartScreen Filter”.
Blocking Websites
Meanwhile, you can block websites using its cookies too! You can hand pick from three different options, namely “Block All”, “Accept All” and “Block Some”. “Block Some” will prevent 3rd party cookies from entering into your site. If cookies don’t fall in line with compact privacy policies, they will be restricted by your windows phone. And, “Block All” will protect your phone from first party cookies too. Hence, any site that contains implicit content will be blocked from your cell phone.
Using the Norton Family
The Norton Family has a collection of interesting apps to block certain websites from your android device. You should sign up for Norton App’s Parent mode and select the “Child” you wish to manage. From the “Activity Tab” you can decide on websites that should be blocked. To block a specific website, you must check “Block This Site”. And, if you want to block all that fall in a specific category, you must check “Block All Category”. As suggested by its name, all sites that are classed in this category will be blocked from your device. The Norton Family App will also let you supervise user accounts and sites that are blocked by each of these users. On the whole, there are several ways by which you can block websites from your cell phone and make the device as safe as possible.
Choosing the Right Method!
Most technical freaks believe that Trend Micro’s and ES File Explorer are two amazing ways by which you can block sites from your smartphone. These apps play a vital role when you wish to temporarily block websites. You can unblock these websites at any time with just a few clicks of a button. Additionally, you can safeguard your phone from malicious programs, unsafe sites and malware too.
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