How to use cloudflare dns’s parental controls
Andrew Walker
Published Mar 29, 2026
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How to use Cloudflare DNS parental controls
Cloudflare now offers “1.1.1.1 for families”, new DNS servers with built-in parental controls. The standard DNS Cloud 1.1.1.1 server does not perform any filtering, but Cloudflare can now block adult malware and content. The setting is simple.
Cloudflare
Cloudflare now offers “1.1.1.1 for Families,” new DNS servers with built-in parental controls. Cloudflare’s standard 1.1.1.1 DNS server doesn’t perform any filtering, but Cloudflare can now block malware and adult content. Setting it up is simple.
We’re big fans of Cloudflare’s speedy DNS 1.1.1.1 DNS service. It may be faster than your ISP’s DNS servers, and it supports DNS Over HTTPS (DoH) for improved security and privacy. Like Cloudflare’s base 1.1.1.1 service, Cloudflare’s new parental controls are completely free.
To use the new parental controls, you’ll need to change your DNS server setting. We recommend changing the DNS server on your router, as that change will apply to every device on your network.
Enter the following DNS server addresses, depending on which version of Cloudflare’s DNS you want to use:
Cloudflare DNS, no blocking:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.1
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.1
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware only:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.2
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.2
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware and adult content:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.3
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.3
The new parental controls work similarly to the parental controls in OpenDNS. When a device on your network tries to request a malicious or adult site, Cloudflare’s DNS will block the attempt by not responding with the site’s actual IP address. You’ll instead see a DNS error.
Like all filtering solutions, Cloudflare’s database isn’t perfect and it won’t block all malicious or adult domains. But it can reduce security threats and prevent casual access to many adult websites.
Cloudflare now offers “1.1.1.1 for Families,” new DNS servers with built-in parental controls. Cloudflare’s standard 1.1.1.1 DNS server doesn’t perform any filtering, but Cloudflare can now block malware and adult content. Setting it up is simple.
We’re big fans of Cloudflare’s speedy DNS 1.1.1.1 DNS service. It may be faster than your ISP’s DNS servers, and it supports DNS Over HTTPS (DoH) for improved security and privacy. Like Cloudflare’s base 1.1.1.1 service, Cloudflare’s new parental controls are completely free.
To use the new parental controls, you’ll need to change your DNS server setting. We recommend changing the DNS server on your router, as that change will apply to every device on your network.
Enter the following DNS server addresses, depending on which version of Cloudflare’s DNS you want to use:
Cloudflare DNS, no blocking:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.1
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.1
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware only:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.2
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.2
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware and adult content:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.3
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.3
The new parental controls work similarly to the parental controls in OpenDNS. When a device on your network tries to request a malicious or adult site, Cloudflare’s DNS will block the attempt by not responding with the site’s actual IP address. You’ll instead see a DNS error.
Like all filtering solutions, Cloudflare’s database isn’t perfect and it won’t block all malicious or adult domains. But it can reduce security threats and prevent casual access to many adult websites.
Cloudflare
Cloudflare now offers “1.1.1.1 for Families,” new DNS servers with built-in parental controls. Cloudflare’s standard 1.1.1.1 DNS server doesn’t perform any filtering, but Cloudflare can now block malware and adult content. Setting it up is simple.
We’re big fans of Cloudflare’s speedy DNS 1.1.1.1 DNS service. It may be faster than your ISP’s DNS servers, and it supports DNS Over HTTPS (DoH) for improved security and privacy. Like Cloudflare’s base 1.1.1.1 service, Cloudflare’s new parental controls are completely free.
To use the new parental controls, you’ll need to change your DNS server setting. We recommend changing the DNS server on your router, as that change will apply to every device on your network.
Enter the following DNS server addresses, depending on which version of Cloudflare’s DNS you want to use:
Cloudflare DNS, no blocking:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.1
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.1
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware only:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.2
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.2
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware and adult content:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.3
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.3
The new parental controls work similarly to the parental controls in OpenDNS. When a device on your network tries to request a malicious or adult site, Cloudflare’s DNS will block the attempt by not responding with the site’s actual IP address. You’ll instead see a DNS error.
Like all filtering solutions, Cloudflare’s database isn’t perfect and it won’t block all malicious or adult domains. But it can reduce security threats and prevent casual access to many adult websites.
If you think parental controls are dead, think again. Today I will provide you with a way to protect your family by configuring your device’s DNS to a free service from Cloudflare called “1.1.1.1 for Families”. DNS is short for Domain Name System. It is the system that allows us to look up a website just by providing a domain name, i.e. facebook.com. Before a website can be launched, your device calls up a DNS server to lookup the site’s IP address. Once that is obtained, the site can be located on the internet.
Cloudflare initially launched the 1.1.1.1 DNS server catering to privacy minded individuals and organizations. They never sell user data, do not log people’s DNS queries and they also offer encrypted services through DNS over TLS and DNS over HTTPS. You can learn more about encrypted DNS in my article describing what it is and how to setup, here.
Cloudflare eventually launched “1.1.1.1 for Families”. They apply the same philosophy but add extra layer of security by curating a list of sites that are adult content or malware. If your device is configured to use this service, when a user is trying to access a resource that is blacklisted they will not be served up it’s IP address. If you have a family PC or child’s device, this is a perfect solution to protect the children in the household from accessing inappropriate content.
Granular settings
Cloudflare offers two different options. You can use both IPv4/IPv6 protocol to block by either Malware Content or Malware and Adult Content. We decided between these options by modifying the Primary and Secondary DNS servers on our device.
Malware and Adult Content Blocking
Continue on to learn how to configure for Windows, Android, and Apple devices.
Configuring For Windows
On most computers this process is the same but here is how to do it on Windows 10.
Hit WindowsKey+R to get a run prompt and enter, “ms-settings:”. Hit “OK”.
This should bring up settings, click on “Network & Internet”.
Under “Change your network settings”, click “Change adapter options”.
This opens up a new “Network Connections” explorer. Right click on your WIFI or Ethernet adapter and click “Properties”.
Select “Internet Protocol Version 4” and click “Properties”.
Feel free to use the settings you want, but here we will use the malware and adult content blocking servers. First we set the IPv4 protocol DNS server settings. Enter the addresses and hit “OK”.
Now we need to set the IPv6 protocol DNS servers. Select “Internet Protocol Version 6” and click “Properties”.
Enter the corresponding IPv6 settings. Then click “OK”.
Exit out of everything and open up a browser in privacy mode so the test address doesn’t get cached in the browser history. Type in “p**n.com” and if you see the following screen your parental controls are in place.
Configuring for Android Devices
Slide from the top of your device and long pause on the WIFI icon on the far left.
Next click on the gear icon for your connected network.
Click on “Advanced” on the bottom.
Turn “IP Settings” to static and enter in your new DNS servers. If you don’t remember your IP address or gateway, go back and get the details from the previous screen.
Click save, exit and try test in your favorite Android web browser.
Configuring on Apple IPhone
Go to “Settings” and click on “WIFI”. Click on your WIFI network.
Click on “Configure DNS”.
Delete default DNS servers and add Cloudflare’s servers. Also delete any search domains. Save and exit.
Rest easy
You can now have piece of mind that your household computer does not have carte blanche to search just anything on the internet. Setup is pretty simple and the process of blocking is still up to Cloudflare for the most part. However, they will be adding features such as custom white and blacklists, as well as setting time of day or social media blocking. When those implementations come out, stay tuned on how to set that up for even better parental controls.
michael rinderle
I have been programming for 7 years with over 10 years of systems administration. This is my blog to write about technology, current events, code, spread awareness, rant and rave and write the wrongs of the past. I am into new technology, programming, archery, turntablism, disc golf and rally racing.
Cloudflare now offers “1.1.1.1 for Families,” new DNS servers with built-in parental controls. Cloudflare’s standard 1.1.1.1 DNS server doesn’t perform any filtering, but Cloudflare can now block malware and adult content. Setting it up is simple.
We’re big fans of Cloudflare’s speedy DNS 1.1.1.1 DNS service. It may be faster than your ISP’s DNS servers, and it supports DNS Over HTTPS (DoH) for improved security and privacy. Like Cloudflare’s base 1.1.1.1 service, Cloudflare’s new parental controls are completely free.
To use the new parental controls, you’ll need to change your DNS server setting. We recommend changing the DNS server on your router, as that change will apply to every device on your network.
Enter the following DNS server addresses, depending on which version of Cloudflare’s DNS you want to use:
Cloudflare DNS, no blocking:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.1
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.1
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware only:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.2
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.2
Cloudflare DNS, blocking malware and adult content:
- Primary DNS: 1.1.1.3
- Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.3
The new parental controls work similarly to the parental controls in OpenDNS. When a device on your network tries to request a malicious or adult site, Cloudflare’s DNS will block the attempt by not responding with the site’s actual IP address. You’ll instead see a DNS error.
Like all filtering solutions, Cloudflare’s database isn’t perfect and it won’t block all malicious or adult domains. But it can reduce security threats and prevent casual access to many adult websites.
@lowellheddings
Apr 1, 2018, 4:29 pm EST | 1 min read
It wasn’t too many years ago that geeks would always use a custom DNS server to speed up their web browsing. Now Cloudflare has one too, but should you use it?
Before we continue, for the uninitiated: DNS is like a phone book for your web browser to look up the IP address of websites you try to connect to. Often using a third party DNS server like Google DNS or OpenDNS will speed up your browsing or give you extra featuress like parental controls.
These days most DNS servers are fairly fast so using a third party for speed reasons isn’t quite as important —- but there’s a bigger problem: privacy. Even if you are visiting websites using encrypted HTTPS, the DNS lookup gives away the fact that you are visiting a particular site, as Cloudflare’s announcement post mentions:
What many Internet users don’t realize is that even if you’re visiting a website that is encrypted — has the little green lock in your browser — that doesn’t keep your DNS resolver from knowing the identity of all the sites you visit. That means, by default, your ISP, every wifi network you’ve connected to, and your mobile network provider have a list of every site you’ve visited while using them.
Cloudflare’s solution is a completely free, blazing-fast DNS resolver for your PC, smartphone, or router. And they promise not to sell your data or even keep debug logs more than 24 hours.
Normally when something is free, the company is going to try to sell your data, or use advertising, or they will eventually go out of business. So what’s Cloudflare’s game here? In a nutshell, Cloudflare offers (an excellent) DNS service for businesses, and that service is more attractive to sell to those companies if a lot of consumers are already using them for lookups. Basically like how the Yellow Pages were given out to consumers for free because businesses had to pay to get a better listing. Before the internet killed the Yellow Pages, at least.
So now that we’ve over explained, should you use Cloudflare’s new DNS server? We’d say it’s definitely worth testing out. They are one of the biggest companies on the internet, and they have an incentive to keep this free. Plus, their business DNS is one of the very fastest if not the fastest solution, and from the benchmarks it appears that their new consumer offering is blazing fast.
If you want to try out Cloudflare DNS for yourself, just use our guide to point your DNS server at 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1. Or visit their homepage for full install instructions:
If you have been using the internet for a while, and have enough knowledge about the workings of the internet, then you might know about the DNS. DNS or Domain Name System is a database consisting of different domain names and IP Addresses.
When we enter a domain in the web browser like Chrome or Edge, the job of DNS servers is to look at the IP address that the domains were associated with. Once matched, it connects to the visiting site, thus rendering the web pages.
By default, ISP provides us the DNS servers. However, it’s wasn’t always profitable to use the DNS servers provided by the ISPs. Using the public DNS servers provides you with better speed, better security, and unblocked internet access.
There are plenty of Public DNS servers available out there, but out of all those, Cloudflare’s DNS server is the popular one. The official blog of Cloudflare claims that the company process more than 200 billion DNS requests per day, which makes it the second-largest public DNS resolver of the world.
Cloudflare’s 1.1.1 DNS server
It’s a fast, secure, privacy-first DNS resolver that is freely available for everyone. That simply means that anyone can use this public DNS server to get better speed and security.
If you are reading this post, then the chances are that you might be well aware of Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 DNS server, but do you know that you can use it for Parental controls and malware blocking?
Basically, the 1.1.1.1 for Families provides users two default options – one that blocks malware and the other one blocks adult content. So, it entirely depends upon you which settings you want to use on your computer.
How To Use Cloudflare DNS to block malware and adult content?
Well, if you want to use Cloudflare DNS servers to block malware and adult content from the visiting website, then you need to follow some of the simple steps given below.
Step 1. First of all, open Control Panel on your Windows 10 and select the ‘Network and Sharing Center.’
elect the ‘Network and Sharing Center.’
Step 2. Next, click on the ‘Change Adapter Settings’ option.
Click on the ‘Change Adapter Settings’
Step 3. Now you need to right-click on the connected adapter and select ‘Properties’
Step 4. Select ‘Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) and click on ‘Properties’
Select ‘Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4)’
Step 5. Choose the option ‘Use this following DNS Server address’ and fill in the DNS values –
Use the following DNS address
Malware Blocking Only:
Primary DNS: 1.1.1.2
Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.2
Malware and Adult Content:
Primary DNS: 1.1.1.3
Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.3
That’s it! You are done. Once done, save the changes.
Cloudflare Public DNS is completely safe to use. It’s already used by millions of users to speed up their internet connection. Also, it provides users enhanced security and privacy features.
Yes, to block malicious content, you just need to use Cloudflare’s Public DNS server address – 1.1.1.2. Once done, it will automatically block all malicious content, including malicious downloads.
So, this article is all about how to block malware and adult content from any webpage using Cloudflare’s Public DNS. I hope this article helped you! Share it with your friends also.
- By Mark Sofia Wyciślik-Wilson
- Published 10 months ago
Cloudflare’s 1.1.1.1 DNS resolver has been around for a couple of years now, helping to cater for those looking for a more private and secure internet connection. Now the company has announced a new version of the product, this time with extra protective layers.
1.1.1.1 for Families is essentially a parental control filter, automatically blocking access to “bad sites”. This means not only sites that deliver malware, but also adult sites that might not be suitable for younger internet users. But while parents may welcome this automated filtering, 1.1.1.1 for Families has already come in for criticism for incorrectly blocking sites.
- Cloudflare announces free VPN tool WARP for Windows and macOS, with Linux to follow
- Microsoft releases out-of-band update to fix VPN bug
- me quintuples its data limit for users of its free VPN tier
Announcing the new service, Cloudflare says: “Since launching 1.1.1.1, the number one request we have received is to provide a version of the product that automatically filters out bad sites. While 1.1.1.1 can safeguard user privacy and optimize efficiency, it is designed for direct, fast DNS resolution, not for blocking or filtering content. The requests we’ve received largely come from home users who want to ensure that they have a measure of protection from security threats and can keep adult content from being accessed by their kids. Today, we’re happy to answer those requests”.
Introducing 1.1.1.1 for Families — the easiest way to add a layer of protection to your home network and protect it from malware and adult content. 1.1.1.1 for Families leverages Cloudflare’s global network to ensure that it is fast and secure around the world. And it includes the same strong privacy guarantees that we committed to when we launched 1.1.1.1 two years ago. And, just like 1.1.1.1, we’re providing it for free and it’s for any home anywhere in the world.
On Twitter, Sarah Jamie Lewis from the Open Privacy Research Society, was unhappy to discover that 1.1.1.1 for Families was blocking access to sex education sites as well as those providing LGBTQ news:
Cloudflare, swearing it is not a joke, have launched a censored DNS product that out the gate blocks LGBTQ support and aid sites as well as sex education resources.
(They have unblocked some of these now in response to complaints, but many remain inaccessible via their filter)
— Sarah Jamie Lewis (@SarahJamieLewis) April 1, 2020
Another category with heavy bias: News
Cloudflare filters lgbt focused news sites like Advocate and PinkNews.
This list will be endless.
— Sarah Jamie Lewis (@SarahJamieLewis) April 1, 2020
Once alerted to the matter, Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince got involved, apologizing for the oversight and starting the process of unblocking some sites:
Dumb mistake on our part and we are fixing immediately. If you have suggestions on how we can do better, please let us know. Cc: @dok2001
To use 1.1.1.1 for Families, there’s no need to install an app — you just need to change the DNS settings on your router. For now, there are various configuration you can use depending on the level of protection you’re looking for:
Malware Blocking Only
Primary DNS: 1.1.1.2
Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.2
Malware and Adult Content
Primary DNS: 1.1.1.3
Secondary DNS: 1.0.0.3
Malware Blocking Only
Primary DNS: 2606:4700:4700::1112
Secondary DNS: 2606:4700:4700::1002
Malware and Adult Content
Primary DNS: 2606:4700:4700::1113
Secondary DNS: 2606:4700:4700::1003
Cloudflare says that additional configuration options will be made available in the months ahead, including manual whitelisting and blacklisting, and setting limits based on the time of day.
