There are two cases where one might want to block browsing on some websites . The first is that of an office manager who does not want employees to waste time at work by going online, buying on Ebay or watching Youtube videos (see the sites that waste the most time at work). The second case, on the other hand, is that of a parent who rightly wants to let the child surf the Internet, avoiding, however, that it happens, by chance or curiosity, on sites not for minors. There are several solutions, some more elaborate, others easier and more immediate, which allow you to block some sites on your PC or to limit the browsing time on those sites that waste time at home or at work.
For the first case I had already reported programs that allow you to control what is done on computers on the network (at home or, better, in an office).
For the second case, however, I had recommended installing programs that prevent browsing on dangerous or adult sites.
All the methods mentioned above, including that for preventing the browser from opening some websites using the hosts file, require some familiarity with the Windows settings.
1) To block dangerous sites on a Windows or Mac computer, the best program you can find is K9 Web Protection .
It is a free program that can be downloaded after registration with an existing Email address which is used to receive the serial number. With K9 web Protection you can both block dangerous sites, with viruses, with pornography or violent content, and limit the browsing time allowed in specific times and days ( time restrictions ). In this way you can configure the computer used not to open Facebook and YouTube during working hours or to impose that some sites can only be visited on the weekend. The difficulty in configuring the protection and the locks is linked to the fact that the program is only in English and since when we talk about permissions on the PC, we always get confused, problems may arise. Obviously nothing prevents you from making configuration tests that can always be changed at any time.
The program can be password protected, it can show the entire activity done on the internet, all the sites visited and the time spent on specific pages . You can also block keywords in internet searches ( URL Keywords ) and set exceptions. One thing that you may not like is that you cannot create different profiles so any block or limitation is also applied to the administrator.
The nice thing is the Web Categories to block section where, by setting to " Custom " you can choose which categories of websites should be blocked on your computer. In this way everything becomes automatic with an updated internet filter, taken directly from the BlueCoat servers, the House software that develops K9.
2) If K9 turns out to be too big for your needs and you only need an easy and immediate tool that blocks some specific websites, you can download and install AnyWebLock instead .
On AnyWebLock just indicate the addresses to block and you can also specify subdomains (for example to limit only some blogspot.com sites). The installation of Anyweblock is quick and easy and requires the entry of a password to protect the program settings.
3) The third software of this article is Internet Security Controller specialized in limiting the time spent by users on websites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube etc. on a specific computer (for example, employees in an office or children at home).
This too remains protected by a password that only the administrator, the parent or the boss must know.
A bit like K9 does, but with a simpler interface, this tool allows you to configure precise options regarding the day, date and time to block access to sites that waste time. Many social network sites are already added by default, however, you can add new ones from the text box at the top or remove them by removing the block.
For each site you can set a daily limit of time allowed during a day, without therefore requiring navigation at specific times. This check can be useful for parents to prevent children from spending whole days playing online or to manage work breaks without prolonging them for a long time. Internet Security Control is very easy to use, it can be a good alternative for small businesses with few computers that don't use a proxy server. Again, as in K9, restrictions are applied to all users of the computer, including the person who sets the time limits.
4) To block sites easily on a PC, you can install the Block Site extension, for Chrome and Firefox that allows you to create a list of blocked sites, to avoid spending too much time or to prevent them from being visited.
5) Finally, the simplest of all is the NoVirusThanks Website Blocker program to block websites on your computer and prevent their display and navigation, both intentional and accidental. In addition, it is also possible to filter traffic by adding some keywords to avoid, block all incoming and outgoing traffic, choose to allow browsing only on some websites blocking everything else and set times or days for the programmed block.
READ ALSO: Parental control and family filter on PC and internet: 5 ways to keep children safe
