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Don’t know what your child is doing online? Parental controls are on your mind? If you want to learn how to block websites in Google Chrome and other browsers, read our guide.
Blocking websites – who can use it?
The Internet is a place full of all kinds of content – from interesting and valuable, to unwanted or even dangerous. Even though the latter type of website is systematically added to the Blacklist URL, which is a list of addresses considered to be malicious, you still come across questionable domains. So knowing how to block websites in your browser turns out to be extremely useful.
Blocking websites is used, among others, in companies that want to limit cyberslacking (cyber-laziness) in which employees use company electronic devices and the Internet for private purposes while they should perform their duties. Most often, this has a negative impact on the company’s results, so it’s a good idea to block some sites, such as social networks or streaming.
Limited network access is also useful in everyday life – for example, if you often hesitate to perform various activities and you see the reason for it in the constantly appearing, effectively distracting notifications or the content itself, the browsing of which can take a lot of time. You can also use blocking for dangerous websites. You can come across them by clicking on suspicious links or ads, thus exposing your device to virus-related threats.
Related: IoT, or the Internet of Things – what is it? Everything you need to know about IoT
How to block websites from children?
Disabling certain sites is also useful for parents who want to control the content reaching their children. This is, of course, a moot point – there will be both opponents and supporters of such practices. Regardless of beliefs, pornography and violence are just the beginning of the dangers facing the youngest in the virtual world, so many people are looking for a way to limit children’s access to certain websites.
You are also a parent and are wondering what you can do to do this? If you don’t want to change anything in your browser (Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox or other) or install any additional programs, start by modifying the host on your computer, which will immediately block the sites you specified. How to do this on Windows?
To begin with, open the hard drive with the OS installed – most often it is Windows (C :). Once that’s done, go to Windows and click System32. Then open the drivers and etc, and finally the file is named hosts using notepad (make sure you are the administrator before making any changes – otherwise you will not be able to edit anything). At the bottom of the document there are pages blocked on your computer, preceded by the number 127.0.0.1. Add your own addresses like the existing ones, save the file and reset the computer.
How to block websites in Google Chrome and other browsers?
How to block websites in Chrome or another browser? You just need to install the appropriate add-ons. Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Opera offer the popular BlockSite extension, which not only can restrict access to the sites you choose, but can also inform you about your browsing habits. After the plugin has been successfully installed, go to the Extensions in the top bar of the browser. Then click the options and enter the address of the website you want to block in the appropriate box.
The BlockSite extension comes in two versions – free and paid ($ 19.99 / month; $ 8.29 / 12 months; $ 13.29 / 6 months). Both allow you to block sites by entering complete addresses (up to six in the basic package, and unlimited in Unlimited) and specifying only specific words or phrases contained in the URL. In turn, the paid version also offers blocking with a category or password and allows you to personalize the page displayed in place of the disabled one.
How to block websites on the phone?
The way to block websites on your phone will be different depending on what operating system your mobile device has. For the iPhone, you can do it directly from the settings. Once opened, select Screen Time, then restrict content and privacy. From there, go to content restrictions and www content. Finally, check the option always block. From there, you can create your own BlockList of your own.
On the other hand, users of Android devices cannot disable domains from the settings. However, they can do this by ordering a website blocking service – by phone, SMS or using an application from the internet provider / mobile operator (remember that this option often involves additional fees). One more simple solution is to install the already mentioned BlockSite plugin, which you will find in the Google Play Store.
As you can see, there are several simple ways to block dangerous or simply malicious websites. You can follow ready-made and proven solutions (by installing dedicated add-ons or ordering a service) or you can disable websites yourself from the level of system files. Regardless of whether you are a parent or you manage a team of people and you can not let the efficiency of your subordinates drop, the awareness of the possibility of blocking websites and knowing how to do it is always useful.
