How to block websites on Android

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There are many reasons to block a web page on an Android mobile or tablet . You may have small children at home and you don’t want them to visit certain pages, you may want to use the device only for work, or you may even need to avoid procrastination at all costs.

All these reasons are more than valid. Now, the bad news is that Android does not have a native system to filter web pages , which means that we will have to install a specific tool to achieve our goal.

For this we have several options:

  • Use a browser extension
  • Install an app to block pages
  • Use a firewall or alternate DNS to filter out all unwanted content

How to block certain web pages on Android devices

If you don’t want to complicate your life too much, the easiest way to block access to a website is to use an app that manages the entire process. The most popular apps are Android parental control tools , although there are more alternatives.

Block websites with an app

  • BlockerX: Currently BlockerX is the best free application that we can find on Android to block content on the Internet. It allows you to block apps and websites by theme (social networks, video games, adult content), block specific web pages or even block websites according to certain keywords. | Download on the Google Play Store
  • Google Family Link: This parental control application developed by Google is used to monitor the online activity of children and minors, but also to block access to inappropriate web pages. In addition, it also allows you to set time limits for the use of certain apps and automatic blocking of adult content from the Play Store. | Download on the Google Play Store
  • Kroha Parental Control: Probably the most powerful alternative to Google’s Family Link today. Allows you to block apps and websites, block YouTube videos, limit usage time, monitor phone location, and get usage statistics. | Download on Google Play Store
  • Antivirus apps: Some of the most popular antiviruses, such as Norton , ESET or Kaspersky , have their own parental control service to block access to web pages. In general, these types of apps do not offer as good results as the alternatives that we have just mentioned a little above, but they are there in case we want to try them.

Use a browser extension

Android browsers do not offer an easy way to block web pages. If we want to do it , we will have to resort to extensions or add-ons, but most browsers are not compatible with this type of tool.

What we can do in this regard is to install a browser like Firefox , and then add the LeechBlock extension , a web page blocker.

  • Open Firefox and click on the 3-dot icon that you will see in the right corner of the screen. Select “ Add-ons”.
  • Within the plugins locate LeechBlock NG and click on “ +”.
  • Lastly, select “ Add” to add the plugin.

Now that we have the plugin installed, we just need to configure it.

  • Click on the 3-dot icon in the corner again, and select “ Add-ons -> LeechBlock”.
  • Click on “ Options”.
  • From here you can add all the web pages you want to block, both domains and specific URLs, or even perform keyword blocking.

LeechBlock is a fairly complete tool, with a lot of additional filters, and allows you to block up to 30 websites . Of course, if you are going to use this method to block content, do not forget to uninstall or disable the rest of the web browsers that you have on your Android device.

Set up an alternate firewall or DNS

Another way to block websites is by installing and configuring a firewall for your Android. Normally this type of application requires root permissions, but there are also free alternatives such as the Firewall app without root , which works quite well on most terminals.

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Firewall without Root

Developer: Grey Shirts

Price: Free

To block a web page with this application follow these steps:

  • Open the Firewall app without root.
  • In the lower menu select “ Filters”.
  • Click on “ New Pre-Filter”.
  • Check the Wi-Fi and data boxes that you will see at the top. In this way, the web page will be blocked whether you are connected to Wi-Fi or if you are using the mobile data connection.
  • In “ Address” write the address of the page you want to block.
  • In “ Port” select * (asterisk).
  • Click “ OK” to save the changes.

If you are looking for slightly more technical solutions, you can certainly achieve very good results with this firewall. Of course, keep in mind that the Firewall without root firewall does not support IPv6 addresses, so it does not work with 5G/LTE connections .

Finally, there is also the possibility to configure an alternative DNS . The DNS servers are the ones in charge of managing the Internet access of our mobile, although yes, in Android it can only be applied to Wi-Fi connections. You can see how to set up an alternate DNS on Android in THIS TUTORIAL .

The good thing about alternative DNS is that once configured, you don’t have to do anything else, since the filtering and blocking of web pages is done automatically. In addition, it is a fairly “technical” method, making it difficult to evade or disable.

Take a look at THIS LIST where you will find 10 free public DNS. Here some servers such as Open DNS and UltraDNS stand out , both with automatic blocking of web pages not recommended for minors.

 

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