Sworn

Guide

Block porn on
your Android.

The quickest free way to block adult websites on an Android phone is a setting called Private DNS. It takes about two minutes, works in every app and browser that uses it, and needs nothing installed. Here are the exact steps for Samsung, Pixel and other phones, three free filters that work, and what to do if you want it to stick.

Show me the steps The version that tells someone

Sworn: free malware and ad/tracker blocking, always. Pornography and other categories, plus partner alerts: 7-day free trial, then $7/month.

The free way

Block adult sites with Private DNS.

Every app finds websites by looking up their addresses through a service called DNS. Android lets you send those lookups to a filtering service, which simply doesn't answer for adult sites. Once it's on, those sites stop loading in Chrome, in Samsung Internet and in apps that open web pages. It isn't a VPN, so your connection speed, banking apps and Maps all keep working normally.

On a Samsung Galaxy

  1. Open Settings, then Connections.
  2. Tap More connection settings, then Private DNS.
  3. Choose “Private DNS provider hostname”. Type one of the hostnames below exactly as shown, and tap Save.

On a Pixel and most other Android phones

  1. Open Settings, then Network & internet. Some phones call it Connections or More connections. If you can't find it, type “Private DNS” into the search bar at the top of Settings.
  2. Tap Private DNS.
  3. Choose “Private DNS provider hostname”. Type one of the hostnames below and tap Save.

Pick a filter

All three are free, need no account, and were tested from our own network in October 2026: each one refused a well-known adult site and loaded ordinary sites normally.

  1. A

    Cloudflare for Families

    family.cloudflare-dns.com

    Blocks adult content and known malware. Nothing else changes, which makes it the least likely to get in your way.

  2. B

    CleanBrowsing Adult Filter

    adult-filter-dns.cleanbrowsing.org

    Blocks adult and malicious sites and turns on SafeSearch in Google and Bing. Its stricter Family Filter also blocks proxies, VPN sites and mixed sites like Reddit:

    family-filter-dns.cleanbrowsing.org

  3. C

    AdGuard DNS Family

    family.adguard-dns.com

    Blocks adult sites, ads and trackers, and turns on safe search. Blocking ads as well can occasionally break a site.

Check that it worked. After saving, open your browser and try to visit a site you meant to block. It should fail to load, or show the filter's block page. Ordinary sites should load as usual. If nothing changed, look for a VPN app that's switched on, or a browser with its own “secure DNS” setting (see below).

Brand names belong to their owners. We have no relationship with any of these services, and they're all good at what they do.

What gets around it

Where Private DNS stops.

  1. A

    Some browsers bring their own DNS

    Firefox and Brave can send lookups through their own encrypted DNS and skip the phone's setting. In each one, find the secure DNS setting and turn it off or set it to use the system.

  2. B

    VPN apps

    Most VPN apps replace the phone's DNS while they're connected, so a VPN switches the filter off without touching the setting.

  3. C

    The same screen that turns it on

    Anyone holding the phone can go back to Private DNS and set it to Off. For a child, that's what parental controls are for. For an adult blocking it for themselves, it's the real weak spot, because nobody ever finds out.

A DNS filter also works from a list, so a brand-new site can slip through until the list catches up.

Other built-in tools

What else Android offers.

Android has no single “block adult websites” switch the way an iPhone does. These cover parts of the problem.

  1. A

    Google Family Link

    Parental controls for a child's Google account: Chrome site filtering, SafeSearch, app approval and screen time, run from the parent's phone. It's a good fit for a young child. Its website filter only covers Chrome, but it can block apps on a phone where Advanced Protection stops app blockers.

  2. B

    Google Play parental controls

    In the Play Store's settings you can limit which apps can be downloaded by age rating, protected by a PIN. It filters apps, and has no effect on websites.

  3. C

    SafeSearch

    Hides explicit results in Google search. A site typed straight into the address bar still loads.

  4. D

    Digital Wellbeing

    App timers and Focus mode can make an app harder to open, but it doesn't filter content and won't block a website.

If you want it to stick

Private DNS, plus someone who'd know.

Sworn uses the same Private DNS setting, with its own filter behind it. The difference is what happens when the phone stops filtering, whether the setting was switched off or a VPN took over. One person you chose gets a short email. That closes the gap in the free setup, where turning it off is invisible.

  1. Install Sworn and pick pornography. Add gambling, social media, online shopping, gaming, or VPN/proxy too if you want. Malware blocking is free forever; the paid categories and partner alerts come with a 7-day free trial, then $7/month.
  2. Turn on the one setting. Sworn gives you an address to paste into Android's Private DNS setting and opens that screen for you. It takes about three minutes, with no management profile and no browser extension.
  3. Add an accountability partner (optional). They confirm by email first, with at most one reminder. After that they only ever see a count of blocked attempts and the category, never a URL and never your history. They're also told if you remove a blocked category, and if the filter is turned off or goes quiet because of an uninstall, a disabled setting or a phone that's offline.

No screenshots, and no log of the sites you visit. Blocked attempts are kept only as short-lived tallies for your own in-app view and expire after 7 days. Cancel in two taps in Google Play. A determined person can still remove Sworn; the point is that they won't do it unnoticed.

Common questions

Does Private DNS block porn in Chrome?

Yes. Chrome on Android follows the phone's Private DNS setting, unless someone has picked a custom provider in Chrome's own Secure DNS setting. So a filtering hostname blocks adult sites in Chrome as well as in Samsung Internet and most apps. Firefox and Brave need their own secure DNS setting turned off first.

Is there a free way to block porn on Android?

Yes: Private DNS with one of the free filters above. It costs nothing and installs nothing. What it can't do is tell anyone when it's turned off, which is the part Sworn adds.

Will it slow my phone down?

No. A DNS lookup is one small request when a site first loads, and these services are fast. Your traffic doesn't pass through them the way it would with a VPN.

How do I block porn on my child's Android phone?

Use Google Family Link. It's built for a parent managing a child's account, and the child can't change it from their own phone. A Private DNS filter on top covers apps and browsers beyond Chrome.

How do I stop myself from just turning it off?

On a phone you own, nothing makes that impossible, and any app that promises otherwise is overselling. What changes the moment is knowing someone will find out. That's the idea behind accountability over “unremovable” blockers.

On an iPhone instead? Read how to block porn on iPhone. Comparing apps? See the honest buyer's guide.

Every app on your phone,
and someone in your corner.

Free to start. About three minutes to set up.

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On a computer too? Set up the phone first, then add Windows, Mac, Linux or Chromebook to the same account.