So you’re looking at the list of categories and trying to decide which ones to block. Sounds simple enough, right? But after looking at the list for a minute or two, questions start popping up in your head and suddenly it’s not quite as simple as it sounds. Which categories should I unblock? What kind of sites will I see if I do? These questions, along with any others that might spring to mind, are understandable. You want to make smart decisions in what to allow and what to block. Hopefully after reading the next few paragraphs, you’ll be more informed and better prepared when you check or uncheck those category boxes.

So Many Choices… or Are There?

When you look at the list of categories, you see 32 choices. There are actually more than that – for example, you don’t see pornography and child pornography. Unblocking those categories is just not an option. But if you think about it, there are way more than 32 different kinds of sites out there. But how many more? 50? 150? The truth is, no matter how many categories you come up with there will always be sites that fall into the gray area. That thought aside, there comes a point when many choices simply become too many. We try to strike a balance between providing enough categories to be meaningful and not overwhelming customers with too many. Today that number happens to be 32. Given the ever-changing nature of the Internet, that number will undoubtedly change as we change with it. So with all that said, let’s look at some general rules of thumb our reviewers use when they categorize a site.

On the grand scale, there are essentially two types of categories: Safe and Unsafe. The unsafe ones are fairly obvious – Anarchy, Drugs, Hate. Those categories are blocked by default. The safe categories, the ones that are not blocked by default, are things like News, Sports, and Travel. This is the first thing in the reviewers’ minds when they categorize a site. Is it safe? If it is, they will put the site in one of the safe categories. Ideally, that category will be a good fit and make perfect sense. Travelocity.com is in the Travel category. Simple, right? But what about WebMD? There is no Health or Medical category. The answer is it’s in the News and Sports categories. Wait, what?! Remember there is no perfect fit. Without an obvious choice, the reviewers use one simple premise – is it safe? WebMD is in the Sports and News categories because they are safe and aren’t blocked by default. That is the best fit amongst the safe categories.

Your Local News

An easy way to remember what is considered safe is to think about your local news. Not necessarily what is covered – granted, it’s not always good. Instead think about the format of the local news – news (obviously), entertainment, sports, and business. Those topics of discussion are considered safe. Likewise, those categories are considered safe. Wait a minute, they talk about the weather too, but there is no Weather category. So using the ‘local news’ thought process, how do you think Weather.com is categorized? It’s under the News category, one of the safe ones. Make sense? It’s considered a safe site, so it’s in a category our customers can access by default. The reviewers work very hard to make the Internet as accessible as possible for our customers, but their ultimate job is to protect your family.

More is Worse

On the other side of the spectrum are the unsafe sites. To keep your family safe from these kinds of sites, the reviewers put them in the unsafe, or blocked by default, categories. But just like the safe categories, it’s not always a perfect fit. In these situations, the reviewers err on the side of caution. The more offensive the site, the more unsafe categories they apply. The idea is that by applying multiple categories, the filter will block that site even if a customer has just one unsafe category checked. So beer.com is under Alcohol, while a site about a drug-taking skinhead death cult will get all the unsafe categories to make sure none of our customers have to deal with it. Even if just one of those categories is checked, that site will be blocked.

So which categories should you unblock? That’s a personal choice based on your comfort level. Just remember your local news, and you’ll be in sync with the reviewers and able to make informed choices.