Can Safe Surfer block Tor Browser?
Tor Browser is powerful anti-censorship software designed to break through many kinds of network filtering and monitoring. Used by journalists and activists worldwide, it can even break through China's Great Firewall if configured correctly! Due to its design, Tor Browser is sometimes used to break through internet filtering solutions installed by parents and caregivers.
Safe Surfer is aware of the difficulties that arise for parents wanting to protect their children from accessing harmful online content, so we've developed technology that can help prevent Tor Browser from being either downloaded and/or used on devices protected by Safe Surfer wherever possible, although this depends on the kind of device being used.
For Android mobile devices, we take advantage of special Android features so that we can block Tor Browser. If you have turned on the permanent mode, prevent uninstall, and app blocking features within the Safe Surfer app, it will block Tor Browser if you have the "Proxies and anonymisers" category turned on (which is enabled by default).
For Apple mobile devices, Apple marks web browser apps other than Safari as "17+". If the Chrome web browser app is on this device, keep in mind that this will make Chrome unavailable due to Apple's design. You can stop Tor Browser from being downloaded and/or used by navigating to the following menu on the device in question:
Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > Content Restrictions > Apps > set to 12+ or lower.
Tor Browser will now be unavailable for the device. You might also like to set a passcode on the Screen Time main menu. If your household has mostly Apple devices, we suggest using Apple's Ask to Buy feature—this can help you prevent certain apps (such as VPNs) from being used as a protection workaround. Find out more by clicking this link.
Starting with Windows version 1.2.0, after installing protection, Safe Surfer blocks Tor network systems, which stops Tor Browser from working correctly.
In addition, we have two categories on the Safe Surfer dashboard's Blocking menu that can help prevent Tor Browser from being downloaded in the first place. This doesn't block the Tor Browser networking (where the protection installation takes care of that part), but rather makes it a lot harder to download it in the first place.
For Apple laptops and desktops, Tor Browser doesn't require admin permissions to start (which makes it very difficult to stop being used). To help with this situation, we have two categories on the Safe Surfer dashboard's Blocking menu that you should make sure are enable for the device in question. This doesn't block the Tor Browser networking, but rather makes it a lot harder to download it in the first place.
Apple marks certain Internet-related apps other than Safari as "17+". You can stop some Tor-related apps from being either downloaded through the App Store and/or used by navigating to the following menu on the device in question:
System Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > Content Restrictions > Apps > set to 12+ or lower.
In addition, you might also like to set a passcode on the Screen Time main menu. If the Mac has multiple user accounts, you will need to change this settings for each user. If your household has mostly Apple devices, we suggest using Apple's Ask to Buy feature—this can help you prevent certain apps (such as VPNs) from being used as a protection workaround. Find out more by clicking this link.
Due to how Google has designed Chromebooks, we can't block Tor Browser at this stage unfortunately. In general, we strongly recommend keeping devices out of bedrooms. You might like to consider having a dedicated living space where devices can be used safely. If this is an issue, you might like to consider switching to another device, like a Windows or a Mac computer, where we can provide a better experience.
Safe Surfer is aware of the difficulties that arise for parents wanting to protect their children from accessing harmful online content, so we've developed technology that can help prevent Tor Browser from being either downloaded and/or used on devices protected by Safe Surfer wherever possible, although this depends on the kind of device being used.
Android (Samsung, OPPO, etc.)
For Android mobile devices, we take advantage of special Android features so that we can block Tor Browser. If you have turned on the permanent mode, prevent uninstall, and app blocking features within the Safe Surfer app, it will block Tor Browser if you have the "Proxies and anonymisers" category turned on (which is enabled by default).
iPhone, iPad, and iPod
For Apple mobile devices, Apple marks web browser apps other than Safari as "17+". If the Chrome web browser app is on this device, keep in mind that this will make Chrome unavailable due to Apple's design. You can stop Tor Browser from being downloaded and/or used by navigating to the following menu on the device in question:
Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > Content Restrictions > Apps > set to 12+ or lower.
Tor Browser will now be unavailable for the device. You might also like to set a passcode on the Screen Time main menu. If your household has mostly Apple devices, we suggest using Apple's Ask to Buy feature—this can help you prevent certain apps (such as VPNs) from being used as a protection workaround. Find out more by clicking this link.
Windows
Starting with Windows version 1.2.0, after installing protection, Safe Surfer blocks Tor network systems, which stops Tor Browser from working correctly.
In addition, we have two categories on the Safe Surfer dashboard's Blocking menu that can help prevent Tor Browser from being downloaded in the first place. This doesn't block the Tor Browser networking (where the protection installation takes care of that part), but rather makes it a lot harder to download it in the first place.
macOS
For Apple laptops and desktops, Tor Browser doesn't require admin permissions to start (which makes it very difficult to stop being used). To help with this situation, we have two categories on the Safe Surfer dashboard's Blocking menu that you should make sure are enable for the device in question. This doesn't block the Tor Browser networking, but rather makes it a lot harder to download it in the first place.
Apple marks certain Internet-related apps other than Safari as "17+". You can stop some Tor-related apps from being either downloaded through the App Store and/or used by navigating to the following menu on the device in question:
System Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > Content Restrictions > Apps > set to 12+ or lower.
In addition, you might also like to set a passcode on the Screen Time main menu. If the Mac has multiple user accounts, you will need to change this settings for each user. If your household has mostly Apple devices, we suggest using Apple's Ask to Buy feature—this can help you prevent certain apps (such as VPNs) from being used as a protection workaround. Find out more by clicking this link.
Chromebooks
Due to how Google has designed Chromebooks, we can't block Tor Browser at this stage unfortunately. In general, we strongly recommend keeping devices out of bedrooms. You might like to consider having a dedicated living space where devices can be used safely. If this is an issue, you might like to consider switching to another device, like a Windows or a Mac computer, where we can provide a better experience.
Updated on: 18/10/2024
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