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Web Search Help

Search history and settings: Using SafeSearch

About Google's SafeSearch filter

Use Google's SafeSearch filter if you don't want to see sites that contain pornography, explicit sexual content, profanity, and other types of hate content in your Google search results. While no filter is 100 percent accurate, SafeSearch checks a website's keywords and phrases, URLs, and Open Directory categories to determine and filter out inappropriate sites.

For more pointers on keeping your family safe on the Web, read Google's Tips for Online Safety.

Enable the SafeSearch filter

  1. Visit the Google Preferences page.
  2. In the SafeSearch Filtering section, choose the SafeSearch level you'd like to use:
    • Moderate filtering: This option excludes most explicit images from Google Images results but doesn't filter ordinary web search results. This is your default SafeSearch setting; you'll receive moderate filtering unless you change it.
    • Strict filtering: This applies SafeSearch filtering to both image and web search results.
    • No filtering: This option turns SafeSearch filtering off completely.
  3. Click Save Preferences when you're done setting your preferences.

SafeSearch should remain set as long as cookies are enabled on your computer. Learn more

Firewalls, proxies, and anti-virus programs are often configured to periodically delete cookies. If you access Google from behind one of these programs, you may have to reset your preferences periodically.

Your internet service provider (ISP) or network administrator can override your SafeSearch setting. If you find that your setting is not reflected in the search results you see, please contact your ISP or network administrator for more information.

Lock the SafeSearch filter

If you have a Google Account, you can lock your SafeSearch setting so other users don't change it.

If SafeSearch is turned on, but websites containing offensive content keep appearing in your search results, use the webpage removal request tool to report the site or image.

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