If you have kids at home, you have probably already looked into parental controls on individual devices, phones, tablets, games consoles and so on. But there’s a simpler option a lot of parents don’t know about, and it protects every device in the house at once, without having to set anything up on each one individually. It’s called DNS filtering.

What is DNS, in plain terms

Every time a device visits a website, it needs to look up the address behind the name, a bit like looking up a phone number before you can call someone. That lookup happens through something called DNS. Normally this just happens quietly in the background and you never think about it.

DNS filtering means routing that lookup through a service that checks the address first, and blocks it if it leads somewhere inappropriate, like adult content, gambling sites, or known scam pages. If the site is blocked, the device simply can’t reach it, no matter which browser or app is being used.

Why this is useful for families

The big advantage is that it works at the network level, not the device level. That means:

It covers every device connected to your home wifi, including ones you might forget about, like an old tablet or a games console
Kids can’t easily get around it by switching apps or browsers
You only have to set it up once, rather than on every single device

It’s not a replacement for actually talking to your kids about what’s appropriate online, but it’s a solid extra layer of protection running quietly in the background.

How to set it up

You don’t need to be technical to do this. Here’s the general process:

Choose a filtering service. There are free and paid options built for families, such as OpenDNS Family Shield or CleanBrowsing. These are designed to be simple to set up.
Log into your router’s settings. This is usually done by typing an address like 192.168.1.1 into a web browser while connected to your home wifi. If you’re not sure of the details, they are often printed on a sticker on the router itself, or in the router’s app if you have one.
Find the DNS settings. This is sometimes under a heading like “Internet” or “Network Settings.”
Enter the new DNS addresses. The filtering service you chose will give you two sets of numbers to enter. Copy these in exactly as shown.
Save and restart your router. Once it restarts, every device connecting to your wifi will automatically use the new filtering.

A few things worth knowing

This only filters content coming through your home wifi. If your child uses mobile data on their own phone, it won’t apply, so it’s worth pairing this with device level parental controls too.
Filtering isn’t perfect. Very new or obscure websites can sometimes slip through, so it should be one part of a wider approach, not the only one.
Some filtering services let you customise what’s blocked, so you can choose a level that suits your family.

The bottom line

Setting this up takes maybe fifteen minutes, and once it’s done it quietly protects every device in your home without you having to think about it again.

If you’d like help setting this up, or aren’t sure where to find your router settings, we are happy to take a look. Get in touch and we can help.