Jan 24, 2018  Along with blocking websites and mobile apps, Freedom now blocks apps on Windows. Are you a Mac user? Check out our post on how to block desktop apps on a Mac. What is desktop app blocking? Desktop app blocking allows you block your most distracting desktop apps by either hiding or quitting the app during a Freedom session.

LuLu is a great free, shared-source, macOS firewall that can block unknown outgoing connections, unless explicitly approved by the user. It runs on OSX 10.12+ and runs well on macOS Mojave. It can be configured to allow or block Apple signed binaries and has clear GUI based rule set that can be edited. Apr 18, 2020  If your Home WiFi Router doesn't have the option to block individual WiFi you can depend on the OpenDNS free DNS service to block websites on WiFi network. This workaround is describing how to block a website on the router by using the OpenDNS free Service.

One-click website blocker

The web has the capacity to be both a blessing and a curse at the same time. On the one hand, it enables us to do the work we do and access the wealth of human knowledge. On the other hand, it distracts us from our goals and can even be outright dangerous for our kids.

Naturally, the topic of limiting web access has been in discussion for decades now. How do we block websites full of porn for our kids? What does blocking websites like Facebook and YouTube mean for a modern workplace? Why do we need to restrict ourselves with website blockers to resist temptation and distractions?

All these are valid questions we’ll explore below, in addition to showing you the best ways to block websites that seem to steal your attention all day long.

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Install Setapp on Mac and boost your browsing experience. Or, rather let Setapp boost it by blocking sites that distract you.

How To Block Websites On Mac

Restricting access to apps and websites has been a feature on both Windows and Macs since the early days. Surprisingly, most people aren’t even aware this is a possibility or don’t use it as it seems to be too complicated to set up.

We’ll start by tackling the flow for Parental Controls on Mac. If you’ve used a similar feature on Windows before called Family Safety, the steps would sound familiar, although there are some key differences.

Blocking websites with Parental Controls

As the name suggests, the Parental Controls feature was developed by Apple to help parents put certain restrictions on their kids, such as accessing adult websites, addictive games, endless video streams, etc.

Lately, however, it hasn’t been uncommon for employers to set Parental Controls for their employees, mostly to limit social media usage or deter them from reading news websites throughout the day.

Regardless of your intended application for Parental Controls, here’s how to set it up:

1. Open Parental Controls from System Preferences
2. If you have an account you want to restrict already set up, just choose it from the list. If you don’t, click to create a new user account and then Continue.
3. Fill out all the necessary information and click Create User

Now you should see the full Parental Controls menu with tabs such as Apps, Web, Stores, Time, Privacy, and Other. Feel free to explore all of them and set the restrictions that you deem a good fit. But first, let’s walk through the most popular setups.

To limit your kids exposure to adult websites, go over to the Web tab and choose “Try to limit access to adult websites.” Click Customize to enter websites you want your kids to visit at any time or never go to at all. Similarly, if you don’t want your employees wasting time on social media, you can include any those websites here too.

If you only allow children to visit a handful of websites overall, then choose “Allow access to only these websites” and list them all in the window below using the plus button.

To limit certain apps, navigate to the Apps tab and check “Limit Applications on this Mac.” Now in the Allowed Apps window, click on the dropdown arrow and select any applications that you’re fine with kids having access to.

When you are done, simply click the padlock icon on the bottom left to lock your settings in place. If you want to ensure that over time you kids don’t find a sneaky way to go around your settings, you can infrequently monitor their logs by going into the Logs menu available on the bottom right of your Parental Controls panel.

One important mention is that if you are searching for how to block a website on Chrome or how to block website on Safari, this description above is the way to do it. Parental Controls doesn’t differentiate between browsers, so its settings will work on Safari, Chrome, Firefox, or any other browser you use.

Easily block websites without changing settings

The truth is Parental Controls are somewhat complicated. It takes a while to get all the settings just right. And every time you catch your kids coming up with a new workaround, you have to devise a way to solve that too.

And what if you share the same computer with your children? Then you need to log out and log in every time you pass the laptop to each other. Some of us just don’t need those complications and wish there was an easier way. Luckily, there is.

Meet Focus - a simple website blocker that also works for apps and even specific webpages, all right from your Mac’s menu bar.

To block out distractions in Focus:

1. Click on the app’s icon in the menu bar > Preferences
2. Navigate to the Blocking tab
3. Add any websites, webpages, and applications to the list using plus icons at the bottom. You’re done!

The beauty of Focus is that it doesn’t enforce the focus mode all the time - it works in sessions, which is perfect for sharing the same computer with your kids. So when your kids are asking for some playtime, you can just click on the app’s icon and select “Focus for 25 minutes” or “Custom focus..” to set the period of time during which blocking websites will be enforced.

To prevent your kids from changing settings, just go to Preferences again and, in the General tab, check the “Hardcore mode.” For extra safety, you can also turn on the “Password mode.”

What if your kids have their own computer? Not a problem. In the Preferences window, you can choose Schedule and set the limits you desire.

Block Outgoing Number On Cell

Eliminate distractions to be more productive

Another major advantage of Focus over Parental Controls is that it works not only for your kids but for you too. Don’t you sometimes wish you could block websites on Mac? Turn off YouTube, eliminate Facebook, stay away from Reddit - Focus makes it easy.

Just follow the same instructions as you would for your kid: block websites and apps, set up a schedule that mirrors your work hours, and lock preferences during sessions to minimize temptation.

As we all know, it’s impossible to work undistracted for eight hours straight. In fact, small breaks throughout the day are highly beneficial to your productivity. Focus allows you to turn off the website blocker for a small amount of time in the Break mode.

App To Block Outgoing Mac Websites Free

The app would also delight the followers of the Pomodoro technique, which automatically lets you have a short break after an intensive focus session. Mac app to loop pdf free. You can set it up your break periods in Preferences as well.

For extra motivation, you can include a list of your favorite “go get it” phrases in the Quotes tab in the app’s preferences as well. These quotes will appear when you try to access one of the blocked websites and remind you to get back to what’s truly important.

Quickly concentrate on the task at hand

If Focus can easily solve all your problems related to blocking websites and apps that waste your time, it won’t really help you concentrate on a single task amidst your cluttered desktop and a heap of open windows. That’s where you need HazeOver.

HazeOver is essentially a professional screen dimmer. While it’s not a way to block websites on Mac, it’s the perfect solution for your scattered focus. What this app does is highlighting the currently active window and dimming the rest of the screen, including notifications and other apps.

Even though HazeOver is simple in its application, it allows you to fine-tune every single setting to suit your needs. By going to its preferences from the menu bar icon, you can set how strong the dimming effect is, whitelist apps you don’t want dimmed, which is useful when you work with two windows at the same time, and configure how the apps will work on two or more displays.

As a bonus, HazeOver is perfect for working at night, as it only lets the light from the active app window to go through instead of overwhelming you with an ocean of blue light, which will make it harder to fall asleep later on. Similarly, watching a movie in the evening is so much more pleasant when HazeOver is there to dim everything around the video app.

Use the right website blocker at the right time

Overall, if you’ve used to tinker with all the complex settings in Family Safety on Windows or simply like the granular level of control, using Parental Controls is certainly an option.

Block Outgoing Phone Call

For the rest of us, using Focus + HazeOver presents a much more flexible solution - one that can protect our kids and not let us slack off at the same time.

A bundle of apps for free

Every app mentioned above is a part of Setapp. By downloading one, you get access to everything you need to improve browsing.

Best of all, both Focus and HazeOver are available on Setapp, a platform of over 150 highly acclaimed tools, utilities, and apps for your Mac. Sign up to become a Setapp member and try Focus, HazeOver, and all other apps from its catalogue for free during your trial period. In the meantime, how to block websites on Mac should no longer be a pressing issue.

Yes, it is a good thing that Windows 10 has security features like Defender SmartScreen built in, but sometimes they get in the way. You really want to install this app — you know there's nothing wrong with it — but you're locked out.

Windows Defender SmartScreen acts as a sort of guard dog while you use Windows 10. It will block you from opening some apps if they come from an unknown place or are created by an unknown publisher. While these steps will get you around the Windows 10 block, you should use them with care. Some apps really are harmful and really will get you in a mess. Only go around the Windows 10 app block if you know for sure that the file is safe.

How to open a file blocked by Windows Defender SmartScreen

If a file you know is safe is going to give you trouble when you attempt to launch it, you can quickly give it permission to open.

1. Navigate to the file or program that's being blocked by SmartScreen.
2. Right-click the file.

3. Click Properties.

4. Click the checkbox next to Unblock so that a checkmark appears.

5. Click Apply.

The file should now be treated as safe by SmartScreen and you'll be allowed to open it. If you're running into further problems, try running the program as an Administrator in addition to the steps above.

How to disable Windows Defender SmartScreen

Although not recommended, SmartScreen can be disabled through Windows Defender. If you must completely disable SmartScreen, we recommend re-enabling it soon after.

1. Launch Windows Defender Security Center from your Start menu, desktop, or taskbar.
2. Click the App and browser control button on the left side of the window.

3. Click Off in the Check apps and files section.

4. Click Off in the SmartScreen for Microsoft Edge section.

5. Click Off in the SmartScreen for Windows Store apps section.

SmartScreen is now completely disabled. If you'd like to still receive a warning when a potentially malicious file or program is detected, you can choose Warn in each SmartScreen section.

How to enable Windows Defender SmartScreen

Block Outgoing Number Iphone

Once you've done everything that SmartScreen was preventing you from doing, you should immediately go back and re-enable it. Even if the file or program you were working with was known not to be malicious, forgetting to enable SmartScreen could lead to big problems in the future.

1. Launch Windows Defender Security Center from your Start menu, desktop, or taskbar.
2. Click the App and browser control button on the left side of the window.

3. Click Block in the Check apps and files section.

4. Click Block in the SmartScreen for Microsoft Edge section.

5. Click Warn in the SmartScreen for Windows Store apps section.

More resources

When attempting to download a file through Microsoft Edge, you might sometimes run into a SmartScreen block. Use this guide to get around it and download the files you want.

Updated August 1, 2018: I've refreshed this guide to ensure you're still getting current information about SmartScreen and how to get around it.

Review: Halo 3 on PC is exactly what you were looking for

Halo 3 has been exclusive to the Xbox series of consoles for 13 years, but that all changes now that the game has been released on PC through the Master Chief Collection. But how does the port hold up? Here's our full review.