Use OpenDNS to Protect Your Family Online

Every computer on the Internet has a numerical IP address (for example, 74.125.47.99). In order to make it easier to access other computers on the Internet, we use what is called DNS (Domain Name System) to translate www.google.com into its numerical IP address: 74.125.47.99. You may be asking, "That's great, but how can I use DNS to make web browsing on my family computer safer for my family?"

OpenDNS is a free service that you can use to block certain categories of web sites (for example pornographic, explicit, phishing, or other dangerous sites) for all computers on your home network. OpenDNS has great documentation on how to set it up here. But, if you're already well acquainted with networking, simply use 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220 as your primary and secondary DNS servers. Then, create a free account with OpenDNS and follow the instructions for enabling content filtering. There is also a helpful guide here. (Sources: OpenDNS, The How-To Geek)