Christmas was just here and many children received gadgets that have access to the internet. This is a good time to address internet filters to help block inappropriate material. One very effective way is to use OpenDNS. Here’s a quick description of what DNS is and what OpenDNS does.
What is DNS?
DNS stands for Domain Name System and it is how you get to a website by a name instead of a number. The internet [basically] runs on a numbered system, but the IP address 173.194.35.179 is much more difficult to remember than Google.com. DNS was basically created for humans. An easy way to filter internet content coming into your home or business is to filter domain names, and OpenDNS does just that.
Get Started with OpenDNS
When you visit the OpenDNS website you are presented with home and business options. This post is going to focus on the home service. The home service has free and paid plans, but I recommend the paid plan because it is only $19.95 per year. This option most likely has more filtering options and I want to support the company.
Once signed up, you need to go to the Settings page and select Web Content Filtering. You can select preset filtering (None, Low, Medium, and High), Whitelist Only (only domains you allow – not recommended), or Custom (my preferred). 
There are a lot of options if you select the custom setting, but do not be overwhelmed. Just select the content you want filtered and press apply. You may also add domains you always want blocked at the bottom of the screen under Manage individual domains.
You can now move to the next item in the menu to the left – Security. I suggest checking all three options because you would obviously want to be protected from these types of threats. The next menu option is Customization. This screen does not have essential options, but I enjoy making custom warnings for when someone tries to visit blocked content. That will surely creep out the kids at least a little bit. The next screen is Stats and Logs and it allows you to keep track of what is going on with the internet activity on your network. The last menu item is Advanced Settings and I recommend checking everything. You need to make sure you have Dynamic IP Update checked unless you are positive you have a static IP address. This will be important later on…
Configure Your Router
Once everything is configured at OpenDNS it is time to configure your router. This is the part that will discourage some users. Your network needs to know to use OpenDNS instead of the DNS settings of your internet service provider so you need to change the settings. Luckily, OpenDNS created instructions for some of the most common routers. If yours is not listed, look for something similar. Once you are done configuring your router, make sure the kids do not have access so they do not disable OpenDNS.
Now it’s time to test out your configuration. Do a Google search for “porn” and click on a link that obviously leads to a pornography website. If you get a OpenDNS warning, everything is working. My warning page has the message, “Site blocked. www.pornhub.com is not allowed on this network. John Alvarez.”
Keep OpenDNS Aware of Your IP Address
OpenDNS identifies your account by your IP address. As a home user, you most likely have an IP address that changes every so often (known as dynamic). If it changes, OpenDNS will not know to filter your content. This means you need software to update your IP address with OpenDNS whenever it changes. Here’s how to install and configure the OpenDNS updater:
- Download the OpenDNS dynamic DNS client.
- Install the IP updater and run it. There are no complicated settings.
- Sign in with your OpenDNS username and password and you will be presented with the updater box.
- Click settings and select Run hidden if you want to have this program hidden from other users.
- Do not select Send Dns-O-Matic updates unless you are using that service (which is not addressed in this post).
- Minimize the program (do not close it or X out of it).
*You will want to install this on a computer that runs the most or one that is controlled by adults in the home that will not interfere with its operation.
Now that you are done, I will summarize the limitations and benefits of using OpenDNS.
Limitations of OpenDNS
- You may have realized while reading my description of DNS that there is a simple way around OpenDNS. It is to use IP addresses. Luckily, many people (especially children) may not think to use IP addresses or even know how to find the IP address for the blocked site they want to visit.
- Configuring a router may be too difficult for some users. I would bet that most people could do it if they just did a Google search or read the how to on the OpenDNS website.
- OpenDNS is not 100% effective. OpenDNS needs to be aware of and have categorized a domain so it may be filtered. There is no guarantee they will be able to catalog every website on the internet as they appear or that their opinion of content will agree with yours. Luckily OpenDNS allows its users to offer up their opinions.
Benefits of OpenDNS
- Protect your children from inappropriate content.
- Protect users of any age from malicious websites that could infect computers on your network.
- Low cost, simple solution compared to hardware based filters that are expensive and complicated.
- The entire network is protected and individual computers do not need to be configured.
No matter the amount limitations versus the benefits, OpenDNS is well worth using and well worth $19.95 a year.
*This was not a paid endorsement. Though this post was geared toward home users, OpenDNS will work equally well for businesses.