The internet is full of harmful websites that can give you viruses, or expose your children to things they should not be exposed to. Fortunately, censoring the internet is a fairly easy task to accomplish, especially with the right software or knowledge. Depending on how badly you want the web site blocked, blocking a website may require something as simple as a few adjustments in your web browser, or the use of internet filtering software. If you are unsure which method will work bes tin your situation, you can give all of them a try to see which one is most suitable for your situation.
- Blocking a Website in Internet Explorer
Internet Explorer offers parental control and security features that will allow you to block specific web sites. Follow these steps to block a website in Internet Explorer. Note: This technique will only block one site at a time. If you would like to block several websites, or a particular category such as pornography, then you will need to use a parental control software.
1. Run Internet Explorer
2. Select the Tools Menu
3. Select Internet Options
4. Click the Privacy tab
5. In the Privacy window, Select Sites
6. Now type in the web site address that you would like to block and then Click OK.
- Blocking A Website in Any Web Browser
You can also block a web site by editing your host file. Your host file is a file that is used to store information regarding where to find a particular node on a computer network. To edit your host file to block a certain site, follow these instructions.
1. First, click Start, then select All Programs, then Accessories, and then Command Prompt.
2. Next, click Command Prompt. This will open a DOS command window.
3. Type in: notepad C:/Windows/System32/drivers/etc/hosts
4. Locate the line: 127.0.0.1 localhost
5. To block the website google.com for example, just add the following text under 127.0.0.1 localhost:
127.0.0.1 google.com
127.0.0.1 www.google.com
This can be done with as many sites as you would like.
6. Finally, save the file. This is an advanced but guaranteed way to block a particular website.
- Blocking Websites Using Parental Control Software
Another way you can block a website or a particular category of websites is with the use of a parental control software. There are some parental control softwares like K9 Web Protection that are free, easy to use, and provide excellent protection against virtually any kind of web site. Simply download the parental control software of your choice and install it. Most softwares come fully equipped with all of the information needed to get you started in censoring just about any category you can imagine, from gambling to pornography. The good thing about parental control software is that a password is needed to complete virtually any function possible. The program cannot even be un-installed without a password, so it is very difficult to circumvent.