Block bad sites
Block bad sites on your child's iPad
Same as iPhone — Apple's Screen Time with Web Content set to Limit Adult Websites.
📌 Your child's iPad unlocked for about 10 minutes.
Do this, in order
- 1
Pick up the iPad and open Settings
Tap the grey Settings icon.
- 2
Tap Screen Time
Tap Turn On Screen Time → Continue → This is My Child's iPad.
- 3
Create a 4-digit Screen Time Passcode
Pick 4 numbers your child does NOT know. Write them down.
- 4
Tap Content & Privacy Restrictions → ON
Then tap Content Restrictions.
- 5
Tap Web Content → Limit Adult Websites
Apple's filter activates across every browser on the iPad.
- 6
Lock the settings
Under Allow Changes, set Account Changes and Passcode Changes to Don't Allow.
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.