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SafeSearch

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SafeSearch is a feature in <a href="Google_Search" title="Google Search">Google Search</a> and <a href="Google_Images" title="Google Images">Google Images</a>, and later, <a href="Microsoft_Bing" title="Microsoft Bing">Bing</a>, that acts as an automated filter of pornography and other potentially offensive and inappropriate content.<a href="#cite_note-:0-1">[1]</a><a href="#cite_note-2">[2]</a>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="History">History</h2></div>

On November 11th, 2009, <a href="Google" title="Google">Google</a> introduced the ability for users with Google Accounts to lock on the SafeSearch level in Google's web and image searches. Once configured, a <a href="Password" title="Password">password</a> is required to change the setting.<a href="#cite_note-:0-1">[1]</a>

On December 12, 2012, Google removed the option to turn off the filter entirely, requiring users to enter more specific <a href="Web_query" title="Web query">search queries</a> to access adult content.<a href="#cite_note-3">[3]</a><a href="#cite_note-4">[4]</a><a href="#cite_note-5">[5]</a>

SafeSearch can be enforced by <a href="Local_area_network" title="Local area network">local area network</a> administrators and <a href="Internet_service_provider" title="Internet service provider">ISPs</a> by adding a DNS record. This is often done on school networks to prevent students from accessing pornographic content.<a href="#cite_note-6">[6]</a><a href="#cite_note-7">[7]</a>

Users themselves can turn this setting on to filter out any inappropriate content.<a href="#cite_note-8">[8]</a>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Effectiveness">Effectiveness</h2></div>

A report by <a href="Harvard_Law_School" title="Harvard Law School">Harvard Law School</a>'s <a href="Berkman_Center_for_Internet_%26_Society" class="mw-redirect" title="Berkman Center for Internet & Society">Berkman Center for Internet & Society</a> stated that SafeSearch excluded many innocuous websites from <a href="Search_engine_results_page" title="Search engine results page">search-result listings</a>, including ones created by the <a href="White_House" title="White House">White House</a>, <a href="IBM" title="IBM">IBM</a>, the <a href="American_Library_Association" title="American Library Association">American Library Association</a> and <a href="Liz_Claiborne" title="Liz Claiborne">Liz Claiborne</a>.<a href="#cite_note-9">[9]</a>

On the other hand, many pornographic images slip through the filter, even when "innocent" search terms are entered.

Blacklisting certain search terms is hindered by <a href="Homographs" class="mw-redirect" title="Homographs">homographs</a> (e.g., "<a href="https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/beaver#English:_vulva_or_public_hair_near_a_vulva" class="extiw external" title="wikt:beaver">beaver</a>"),<a href="#cite_note-10">[10]</a> <a href="Blacklist_(computing)" title="Blacklist (computing)">blacklisting</a> certain <a href="URL" title="URL">URLs</a> is rendered ineffective by the changing URLs of porn sites, and software to tag images with copious amounts of flesh tones as pornographic content is problematic because there are a variety of skin tones and pictures of babies tend to have a lot of flesh tones.<a href="#cite_note-11">[11]</a>

Google's ability to filter porn has been an important factor in its relationship with the <a href="China" title="China">People's Republic of China</a>.<a href="#cite_note-owen-12">[12]</a>

<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2></div>

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</style><cite id="CITEREFHumphries2009" class="citation web cs1">Humphries, Matthew (November 12, 2009). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.geek.com/news/google-let-you-lock-safesearch-with-strict-mode-975131/">"Google lets you lock SafeSearch with Strict mode"</a>. Geek.com. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190405074846/https://www.geek.com/news/google-let-you-lock-safesearch-with-strict-mode-975131/">Archived</a> from the original on April 5, 2019. Retrieved April 5, 2019.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-2"><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFSchwartz2012" class="citation web cs1">Schwartz, Barry (December 12, 2012). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://searchengineland.com/google-updates-safesearch-filter-in-image-search-142330">"Google Updates SafeSearch Filter In Image Search"</a>. Search Engine Land. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170729073701/http://searchengineland.com/google-updates-safesearch-filter-in-image-search-142330">Archived</a> from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved April 5, 2019.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-3"><a href="#cite_ref-3">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFNewton2012" class="citation web cs1"><a href="Casey_Newton" title="Casey Newton">Newton, Casey</a> (December 12, 2012). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57558795-93/google-tweaks-image-search-to-make-porn-harder-to-find/">"Google tweaks image search to make porn harder to find"</a>. CNET News. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210827100933/https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/google-tweaks-image-search-to-make-porn-harder-to-find/">Archived</a> from the original on August 27, 2021. Retrieved February 3, 2013.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-4"><a href="#cite_ref-4">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFMatthew_Panzarino2012" class="citation web cs1">Matthew Panzarino (December 12, 2012). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://thenextweb.com/google/2012/12/12/google-changes-search-image-safesearch-explicit/">"Google tweaks image search algorithm and SafeSearch option to show less explicit content"</a>. TNW. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20211207135738/https://thenextweb.com/news/google-changes-search-image-safesearch-explicit">Archived</a> from the original on December 7, 2021. Retrieved February 3, 2013.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-5"><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFJosh_Wolford2012" class="citation web cs1">Josh Wolford (December 16, 2012). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.webpronews.com/google-preventing-u-s-users-from-disabling-safesearch-2012-12">"Google No Longer Allows You to Disable SafeSearch, and That Makes Google Search Worse"</a>. Web Pro News. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20170914063310/https://www.webpronews.com/google-preventing-u-s-users-from-disabling-safesearch-2012-12/">Archived</a> from the original on September 14, 2017. Retrieved February 3, 2013.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-6"><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/186669?hl=en">"Lock SafeSearch for devices & networks you manage - Google Search Help"</a>. Google Help. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20211207140214/https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/186669?hl=en">Archived</a> from the original on December 7, 2021. Retrieved 2021-01-30.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-7"><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://coconuts.co/jakarta/news/safesearch-indonesia-ministry-instructs-isps-restrict-pornography-search-engines-tomorrow/">"SafeSearch on: Indonesia IT Ministry instructs all ISPs to restrict pornography from search engines by tomorrow | Coconuts"</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20220730141922/https://coconuts.co/jakarta/news/safesearch-indonesia-ministry-instructs-isps-restrict-pornography-search-engines-tomorrow/">Archived</a> from the original on July 30, 2022. Retrieved July 15, 2022.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-8"><a href="#cite_ref-8">^</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/safesearch">"Your SafeSearch Setting"</a>. <a href="Google_News" title="Google News">Google News</a>. Retrieved 2024-05-29.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-9"><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFBenjamin_Edelman2003" class="citation web cs1">Benjamin Edelman (April 14, 2003). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/archived_content/people/edelman/google-safesearch/">"Empirical Analysis of Google SafeSearch"</a>. Harvard University. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20130304235802/http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/archived_content/people/edelman/google-safesearch/">Archived</a> from the original on March 4, 2013. Retrieved February 3, 2013.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-10"><a href="#cite_ref-10">^</a> <cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20140305085824/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hJrLjBHj_y8G7OFPAZZmOhUL10Bw">"Canada's The Beaver magazine renamed to end porn mix-up"</a>. AFP. January 12, 2010. Archived from <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hJrLjBHj_y8G7OFPAZZmOhUL10Bw">the original</a> on March 5, 2014. Retrieved February 3, 2013.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-11"><a href="#cite_ref-11">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFPaul_Festa2001" class="citation web cs1">Paul Festa (July 2, 2001). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://news.cnet.com/2100-1023-269290.html">"Porn sneaks past search filters"</a>. CNET News. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20150701144916/http://news.cnet.com/2100-1023-269290.html">Archived</a> from the original on July 1, 2015. Retrieved February 3, 2013.</cite>

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<li id="cite_note-owen-12"><a href="#cite_ref-owen_12-0">^</a> <cite id="CITEREFFletcher2009" class="citation news cs1">Fletcher, Owen (September 7, 2009). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.networkworld.com/article/776541/applications-google-porn-filter-gained-china-s-thumbs-up.html">"Google porn filter gained China's thumbs-up"</a>. Network World. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20211026173614/https://www.networkworld.com/article/2249577/google-porn-filter-gained-china-s-thumbs-up.html">Archived</a> from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2014.</cite>

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<div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2></div>

<ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.google.com/safesearch">Official website</a> </li></ul></div><div><div class="zim-footer">

This article is issued from <a class="external text" title="Last edited on 2025-08-02" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/?title=SafeSearch&oldid=1303909514">Wikipedia</a>. The text is available under <a class="external text" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en">Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0</a> unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

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