Why is Safe Surfer not blocking inappropriate content on a specific app or website?
Safe Surfer provides internet filtering by performing the following two steps:
Enforcing SafeSearch filtering within as many search engines as possible. For example, if a person using a protected device searches for "porn" in Google, it will hide explicit results from coming up (that is, only legitimate results regarding the search term "porn" will appear, such as educational resources and journal articles). This is also meant to apply to image results wherever possible. Performing this filtering reduces the risk of unwanted exposure to inappropriate content. Each search engine provider (such as Google) is responsible for the filtering system itself. We have separate filter settings available for YouTube on the Blocking menu .
In addition to SafeSearch filtering, we also block porn websites themselves. This means that if a person using a protected device attempts to visit a porn website, we stop it from talking to that website in the first place. As of 2024, we block almost 3 million adult domains and subdomains (that is, hundreds of thousands of websites).
We support enforcing SafeSearch filtering for the following search engines:
✅ Bing
✅ Brave Search
✅ DuckDuckGo
✅ Ecosia
✅ Google
✅ Startpage
✅ Yandex
As an example, you can check if Google SafeSearch filtering is locked on for a device by visiting https://www.google.com/safesearch on the device in question. At the upper-right corner of the page, it should display "Filtering on" with a lock icon. If you see multiple SafeSearch options for selection (Filter, Blur, and Off), this likely means that the device isn't reaching our filtering services (unless the device is connected to a Safe Surfer account and you have disabled SafeSearch filtering for Google).
We support blocking search engines that currently don't support enforcing SafeSearch under the "Unsafe search engines" category on the Blocking menu . You can also see articles on how to hide inappropriate content on platforms that don't support hiding content via network filtering by clicking this link .
It's good to keep in mind that SafeSearch systems are automated, which means that they aren't 100% accurate. It's a good idea to perform physical monitoring, in addition to having a dedicated area for using devices at home.
We also support filtering content within apps wherever possible. Due to how computer networking works, Safe Surfer cannot pull inappropriate content out of websites and apps, which is why we support blocking a wide range of websites and apps. Although, it is possible for us to remove inappropriate content if a service (such as a social media app) provides us with networking tools to enforce this. We're working to get more apps and services to support filter locking through computer networking:
Enforcing SafeSearch filtering within as many search engines as possible. For example, if a person using a protected device searches for "porn" in Google, it will hide explicit results from coming up (that is, only legitimate results regarding the search term "porn" will appear, such as educational resources and journal articles). This is also meant to apply to image results wherever possible. Performing this filtering reduces the risk of unwanted exposure to inappropriate content. Each search engine provider (such as Google) is responsible for the filtering system itself. We have separate filter settings available for YouTube on the Blocking menu .
In addition to SafeSearch filtering, we also block porn websites themselves. This means that if a person using a protected device attempts to visit a porn website, we stop it from talking to that website in the first place. As of 2024, we block almost 3 million adult domains and subdomains (that is, hundreds of thousands of websites).
We support enforcing SafeSearch filtering for the following search engines:
✅ Bing
✅ Brave Search
✅ DuckDuckGo
✅ Ecosia
✅ Startpage
✅ Yandex
As an example, you can check if Google SafeSearch filtering is locked on for a device by visiting https://www.google.com/safesearch on the device in question. At the upper-right corner of the page, it should display "Filtering on" with a lock icon. If you see multiple SafeSearch options for selection (Filter, Blur, and Off), this likely means that the device isn't reaching our filtering services (unless the device is connected to a Safe Surfer account and you have disabled SafeSearch filtering for Google).
We support blocking search engines that currently don't support enforcing SafeSearch under the "Unsafe search engines" category on the Blocking menu . You can also see articles on how to hide inappropriate content on platforms that don't support hiding content via network filtering by clicking this link .
It's good to keep in mind that SafeSearch systems are automated, which means that they aren't 100% accurate. It's a good idea to perform physical monitoring, in addition to having a dedicated area for using devices at home.
We also support filtering content within apps wherever possible. Due to how computer networking works, Safe Surfer cannot pull inappropriate content out of websites and apps, which is why we support blocking a wide range of websites and apps. Although, it is possible for us to remove inappropriate content if a service (such as a social media app) provides us with networking tools to enforce this. We're working to get more apps and services to support filter locking through computer networking:
| Name | Type of service | Provides support for filter locking through DNS networking | Filter mode(s) | Safe Surfer category name |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube | Social media | ✅ | Moderate or Strict filter | YouTube |
| Pixabay | Photos and videos | ✅ (re-added in October 2024) | SafeSearch | Entertainment and arts |
| Mojeek | Search engine | 🔄 ( working on support – February 2024 ) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| Kagi | Search engine | 🔄 ( planned to support – February 2024 ) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| GOG.com | Games | ❌ (feedback officially confirmed as received – July 2024) | None | GOG.com |
| Yep | Search engine | ❌ (feedback officially confirmed as received – March 2024) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| TikTok | Social media | ❌ (feedback officially confirmed as received – March 2024) | Restricted mode | TikTok |
| Flickr | Photos and videos | ❌ (feedback officially confirmed as received – February 2024) | SafeSearch | Entertainment and arts; Potentially unsafe services |
| Vimeo | Video sharing | ❌ (feedback officially confirmed as received – March 2024) | Mature content filter | Vimeo |
| Dogpile | Search engine | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| Qwant | Search engine | ❌ (SafeSearch functionality broken approximately late 2023–early 2024; attempted to contact several times H1 2024) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| Yahoo Search | Search engine | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| Baidu (China) | Search engine | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | None | Unsafe search engines |
| Yahoo Search (Japan) | Search engine | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| Cốc Cốc (Vietnam) | Search engine | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | SafeSearch | Unsafe search engines |
| Patreon | Crowdfunding | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | NSFW filter | Business and industrial; Potentially unsafe services |
| Itch.io | Games | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | Adult filter | Games; Potentially unsafe services |
| Bluesky | Social media | ❌ (attempted to contact in March 2024) | Adult content filter | Bluesky |
| Social media | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | NSFW filter | ||
| Dailymotion | Video sharing | ❌ (attempted to contact in February 2024) | Sensitive content filter | Video streaming; Potentially unsafe services |
Updated on: 07/11/2024
Thank you!