Frequently Asked Questions...

What is BrowseSafe?

BrowseSafe is a free DNS service that helps you to enjoy a faster and safer Internet.

Why would I use BrowseSafe?

Any or all of these reasons:
A. Because you want Web pages to load faster.
B. Because you want to avoid identity theft from known phishing websites.
C. Because you want to keep known adult and pornographic websites off of your computer.

What's DNS?

DNS (Domain Name System) is the directory system that translates Web domain names (e.g. www.browsesafe.com) into the numerical Internet Protocol (IP) addresses that computers actually use to locate each other on the Internet. See How BrowseSafe Works for more.

What makes BrowseSafe faster?

Unlike most ISPs or other DNS server hosts, BrowseSafe proactively maintains a large DNS cache and operates high-performance DNS servers. When your DNS requests come to us, our response is often instantaneous, which means that you'll get the pages you want faster. How BrowseSafe Works for more.

What makes BrowseSafe safer?

If you choose our website-blocking options, at the same time that we lookup your DNS requests, we'll also check websites against our list of known phishing and adult websites. If any are on the list, we'll automatically block them. See How BrowseSafe Works for more.

What is phishing?

Phishing is a tactic that identity thieves use to steal people's personal information or money. Often, it's a fake website that appears to belong to your bank, credit card company or other legitimate business that attempts to fool you into providing your login and password or other private information.

How does BrowseSafe keep up to date on phishing websites?

We get frequent updates on newly identified phishing websites from a collaborative clearinghouse of phishing data.

How does BrowseSafe identify adult websites?

We receive frequent updates from a leader in the identification of adult and pornographic websites, and add that information to our comprehensive database.

What if BrowseSafe blocks a website that I know isn't a phishing or adult site?

Click the link on the warning page or contact us to let us know that we've accidentally misidentified a website. We'll investigate it and re-evaluate the website promptly.

Will BrowseSafe work on my computer?

Yes. Regardless of the type of computer you have, how old it is or the operating system it uses, if it connects to the Internet, it uses DNS. And if it uses DNS, you can benefit from BrowseSafe.

Do I need to install any software?

No. BrowseSafe only changes your computer's DNS settings. Our free download is a setup utility that assists you in configuring your computer to use BrowseSafe.

Can I set my DNS settings manually to use BrowseSafe?

Yes. The instructions are here.

Will BrowseSafe work with my firewall, anti-virus or other security software?

Yes. Because BrowseSafe only affects where your computer gets its DNS information, it complements and works with security software.

How do I stop using BrowseSafe?

Change your computer's DNS settings to use your ISP's or another provider's servers. You can also use the installation program to make those changes back to their pre-BrowseSafe settings.

What configuration options does BrowseSafe allow?

You can choose from three options: Faster Internet Only; Faster Internet and Phishing Filter; or Faster Internet, Phishing Filter and Adult Content Filter.

Can I use BrowseSafe with private hosts on a private network?

Yes, but BrowseSafe will use the Internet DNS that will be unaware of your private hosts. If you're using BrowseSafe, put your private hosts and their IP addresses in your /windows/system32/drivers/etc/HOSTS file on windows, or in the /etc/hosts file on Linux or Mac OS X.

For example, let's assume you use Windows XP with Microsoft Outlook to connect to an e-mail server named "mailserver" on your private network. Here is how to setup your computer to work with your e-mail:

1. If BrowseSafe is currently installed on any of the three settings, disable it. You can do this by downloading the installer, running it, and selecting "Uninstall BrowseSafe", then clicking the proceed button.
2. Find the IP of the host named "mailserver". Do this by opening up a cmd window by clicking on Start, then clicking on Run, then typing in "cmd" (no quotes) and pressing enter. In the black window that results, type "ping mailserver", then enter. What results should be something similar to this:
   
   Note the circled IP in the picture above, "192.168.1.107".
3. Add this hostname and IP pair to the hosts file. In the cmd window, type "notepad c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts", then enter. In the file that is opened, write this on a new line, "192.168.1.107 mailserver", then save and close Notepad.
   
4. Install BrowseSafe via the BrowseSafe Installer.

Repeat as necessary for each of the private hosts you access. Upon completion of the above, the hosts on your private network will resolve with BrowseSafe.

How much does BrowseSafe cost?

BrowseSafe is completely free.

How does BrowseSafe make money?

When we block a phishing or adult website, or when you browse to a website that doesn't exist, the warning page you receive may also contain clearly labeled advertisements. The advertising sponsors pay for this privilege so that we can offer BrowseSafe to users for free.

Can I have BrowseSafe block additional websites?

Not currently, but we're working on adding that feature soon.

©2007 BrowseSafe, Inc.