Block bad sites
Block bad sites on your child's Android
Use Google Family Link plus Private DNS to block adult content.
📌 Your phone (with Family Link installed) and your child's Android phone or tablet.
Do this, in order
- 1
On YOUR phone, install Google Family Link
From the Play Store or App Store. Sign in with your Google account.
- 2
Tap + to add your child
If under 13, Family Link makes them a supervised account. If older, send an invite to their existing Google account.
- 3
Sign your child's Android into the child Google account
Settings → Accounts → Add account → Google. Family Link controls activate automatically.
- 4
On YOUR phone, open Family Link → child → Controls → Google Chrome & Web
Choose "Try to block explicit sites" and turn SafeSearch ON.
- 5
Add Private DNS for a system-wide filter
On the child's Android: Settings → Network & internet → Private DNS → Designated → enter: family.cloudflare-dns.com. Save.
- 6
Block other browsers from being installed
In Family Link → Controls → Google Play → Apps and games → Require approval for all apps.
Now let's make sure it actually works
We don't tell you setup is complete until you've tested it with your own eyes.
1. Open a normal website
On the device you just set up, open a regular site like google.com or your local news. It should load normally.
2. Try a blocked test website
Now open this safe test URL — it's a harmless page that adult-content filters block. If your blocker is working, the page will NOT load (you'll see an error or a block screen).
Open test page →
Both tests didn't pass — what to try
Restart the device's Wi-Fi (off then on). On a phone, turn cellular data off so it has to use Wi-Fi. Then try the test again.
Both tests must pass before we mark this complete.
Honest limits — what this won't catch
No parental control catches everything. Here's what slips through, and what to do about it:
- If your child has a cellular data plan, blocks on your home Wi-Fi don't apply when they're not at home.
- If your child turns their phone into a hotspot, other devices using it skip your Wi-Fi filters.
- On a friend's Wi-Fi, your home filter does nothing.
- A VPN can hide their traffic from filters that only check websites by name.
- Installing a second browser can bypass a single-browser extension.