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How to Block Websites

With so many websites being launched everyday, it is necessary to block websites that can harm your computer. Blocking websites is very easy, and can be done in a few minutes.
Stephen Rampur

Did You Know?

According to an OpenDNS survey conducted in 2010, Facebook  emerged as the most blacklisted website!
The need for blocking websites may arise due to many reasons. Parents may want to know how to block websites to keep their children away from adult or inappropriate content, while companies may want to block certain unethical sites.
There are several software that can be used to block websites. These vary in features, functionalities, and price. Here, we take a look at how to block websites without the use of any software.

All Browsers

1.Open Windows Explorer.
2.Go to C: drive and open the Windows folder. In the Windows folder, double-click on System32, and look for the drivers folder. In the drivers folder, navigate to the etc folder. Your path should be:
C: drive ⇒ Windows ⇒ System32 ⇒ drivers ⇒ etc.
In case your operating system is installed on a drive other than C, then start by navigating through that folder.
3.Double-click the Hosts file, and choose the notepad option in the resulting window that opens.
4.Go to the last line of the Hosts file and give an enter to take the cursor to a new line. 
The last line should be ::1 local host.
5.Go to the last line of the Hosts file and give an enter to take the cursor to a new line.
The last line should be ::1 local host.
6.Type 127.0.0.1 followed by the website name to block that website. For example, to block google.com, you will have to type 127.0.0.1 www.google.com
7.Repeat the same process for every website that needs to be blocked.
8.Save the file and close it.
9.The websites you entered are now blocked.

Internet Explorer

1.Open Internet Explorer
2.In the Menu bar, click on Tools.
3.Click on Internet Options from the drop-down. A new window will appear.
4.Click the Content tab and Enable the Content Advisor option. A content advisor window will open.
5.Click the Approved Sites tab.
6.You will find an Allow this website box. Enter the address you want to block and then click Never.
If you want to permanently block the website, prefix it with an *.
7.Now, click the General tab in the Content Advisor window.
8.Check the Users can see websites that have no rating box and clickApply and OK.
9.To set a password, click the Create Password option.
10.Set the password and hint for security purposes.
11.The websites entered will be successfully blocked!

Google Chrome

1.To block any website in chrome, the first step is to download the extension BlockIt.
2.Then, open a new tab in chrome and type chrome://extensions/ in the address bar. You will find the 'BlockIt' extension listed there.
3.Click Options in the BlockIt extension.
4.You will be prompted to enter a password. If you are performing the procedure for the first time, there is no need to enter any password. You can directly click Log-in.
5.A new Sites to block window will open.
6.Enter the addresses of the websites that you need to block. After entering the sites, click the Block option.
7.In order to set the password, go to the BlockIt extensions page and click the Change Password option.
8.You will be prompted to enter a new password. After doing so, click Change.
9.The blocked websites can no longer be accessed.

Firefox

1.Mozilla Firefox offers a Foxfilter extension that you need to download to block websites.
2.Open the Tools menu and navigate to Foxfilter Preferences.
3.When the Foxfilter preferences window opens, click the Mode option. An Enable/Disable option will appear. Check the Enable Filtering box and save the changes.
4.Open the Black List tab in the preferences page.
5.If you scroll down on the page, you will find the Block These Keywords & Websites window.
6.You can enter the addresses of the websites and the keywords that you wish to block. After entering the addresses, click Save Changes.
7.You have now successfully blocked the websites.

Safari

1.Log into the Mac as an administrator.
2.Open System Preferences and select the Parental Controls option.
In case there are multiple user accounts, you are required to choose the one which you want to set the restrictions on.
3.Click the Content option.
4.Enter the website address that you want to block in the provided box.
5.You also need to enter the websites that you wish to allow in the specified box.
6.Close all the windows. The changed settings will automatically be saved.
7.You cannot browse the websites that you have blocked.
Hopefully, the given explanation should have given you useful information on how to block websites on different web browsers.