Easy ways to turn off SafeSearch on Android

If you are tired of restricted searchers and not able to access some apps due to SafeSearch, worry no more. In this blog, you will learn how to turn off SafeSearch Android in various browsers, such as Chrome, Google, Bing, & Yahoo. Besides that, you will learn about alternative ways to save kids from harmful content. So, keep reading!

What is SafeSearch?

“As the name represents, SafeSearch is a filtering feature introduced by Google back in 2009.” 

SafeSearch can be applied to Google accounts, so whenever anybody searches via Google through any browser (firefox, Chrome, etc.), the filter will block all pornographic & inappropriate content.  

SafeSearch can be activated on any device, such as a tablet, computer, mobile device, iPhone, etc. This feature can be used in different areas of life: parents can use it on their children’s phones, schools can use it on their lab computers, companies can use it on their work PCs, and so on.

The best thing about SafeSearch is that you can set a password, and nobody can turn this filter off without your permission. 

How does safeSearch work on Android?

“SafeSearch on Android systems uses special AI algorithms and a database to filter out vulnerable content, images, and videos from the search results.”

For example, suppose you searched about education, then this algorithm works as:

• SafeSearch compares the search results with the inappropriate keywords already saved in its database, and if it finds anything suspicious, it will block it.

• If sensitive content, such as images or videos, is detected, it will block all this content or hide the website containing this toxic material instantly before displaying it on the user’s screen.

• Moreover, this feature has been improving its working using its feedback tool. For example, if users find any inappropriate content, they comment, and it takes action. 

How to turn off SafeSearch on Android?

If you want to turn off SafeSearch but are confused about how to do this, don’t worry; here, we will give you a step-by-step guide to disable SafeSearch.

• Google
• Chrome
• Bing
• Yahoo

Turn off  SafeSearch on Google

To turn off SafeSearch on Google, you have to do the following steps.

• Open the Google browser on your phone > click on your profile picture or initial letters at the top right corner.
• Go to settings on this page.

• Now, on different Androids, you will see either the “Privacy and safety” option or the “Hide explicit results” option; just select any one of them to find the “SafeSearch” option.
• Click the “SafeSearch” option > you will find the “Filter,” “Blur,” or “Off” options. Select the “Off” option, which disables the SafeSearch setting.

Turn off  Safe browsing on Chrome

To disable SafeSerach on your Chrome browser, simply follow these steps.

• Open Chrome browser on your Android.
• Tap on the “three dots icon” on the top right side.

• Select the “Setting” option from the list.

• Go for the “Privacy and security” option, and then you will see the “Safe Browsing” option.
• You will find three options: “Enhanced protection,” “Standard protection,” and “No protection.” Choose “no protection” to disable SafeSearch on your Chrome.

Turn Off SafeSearch on Bing

To turn off SafeSearch on Bing, you have to follow these simple steps.

• Open the Google browser and write Bing.com in the search bar.

• Go for three bars in the top right corner and select the “Settings” option there.
• Select the “SafeSearch” option, and then, according to your preference, choose the “Off” option to deactivate it.
• Click on the “Save” option at the bottom of the page.

Turn off SafeSearch on Yahoo

• Open the Google browser and write Yahoo search.
• Select the “Settings” option at the bottom of the page.

• Tap on the dropdown menu of SafeSearch, go for the “Off” option, and then select “Save” to retain your setting.

Why can’t you turn off SafeSearch on Android?

If you can’t turn off SafeSearch on Android, then there may be the following reasons:

• Your mobile may be managed through parental control settings, which activate the SafeSearch mode to restrain you from accessing explicit websites.

• If an Android phone finds you under 18, it will, by default, set a SafeSearch setting to provide you with healthy internet content.

• Your SafeSearch setting may be locked by the network administrator for safety purposes, and this generally happens when you use Wi-Fi networks in workplaces or institutes.

• It may also depend on your region, as some regions impose legal limitations on such explicit content.

Blocking adult content or chat with SafeSearch on Android

In this modern era, every kid uses a phone and spends most of their time on the internet. There is a lot of adult content, which will cause the exploitation of their minds as they age, which is an alarming situation. 

So, if you are also facing such issues with your child but are confused about blocking this unsafe content on an Android phone, then you have come to the right place; here, we will give you detailed steps to activate SafeSearch to filter out the explicit search results.

• Open any web browser like Google.
• Tap on your profile picture or initials icon.
• Click on the “Settings” option. 

• Different Android phones have different settings. You will see either the “Privacy & Security” or the “Hide explicit results” option. Click any one of them.

You will see the SafeSearch, and by tapping it, three options will be displayed before you, such as:

• Filter to filter out the explicit images, text, videos, and website links (tap on this).
• The “Blur” option just fades the vulgar images, not remove the toxic content.
• The “Off” option discloses all the results, even if they are morally offensive.

If you find a lock on the top right, it means you have already locked the SafeSearch setting either through parental control, network administrator, etc. Now, go to make any search on the web browser, and you will see that this feature has blocked the adult content to some extent.

Does SafeSearch have any limitations?

Everything in this world is not perfect. Similarly, besides having many advantages, the SafeSearch filter is also not 100% reliable. For example:

• Only filters out Google search results and doesn’t block the vulgar content on other websites or apps.

• It does not stop users from clicking websites, links, etc., that may contain disgusting material. It just prevents this type of content from appearing in search results to some extent.

Alternative ways to block adult content or chat on Android

Internet availability has changed the world; although it has a lot of advantages like all kinds of stuff related to education, cooking, daily life, business, etc., available on it, making life easier and more comfortable. But it also contains adult content like pornography, war, bad-mouthing, imaginary stories, etc., which can literally melt the minds of kids & put them into bad habits.

Therefore, you preferably use these different ways to help you block this content from appearing on your screens.

Install adult content filtering extensions

Chrome browser on your Android allows you to add different content-filtering extensions, such as Blockerx, Blocksite, Web Filter Pro, etc. Once added to your browser, they will block websites or web pages containing adult content and ensure that anyone, even by mistake, does not see them.

Furthermore, the biggest advantage of these extensions is that you can set a password to prevent the blocking setting from being changed without your permission. Plus, they also alert you if someone tries to access adult content so that you may take action against it.

Built-in parent control function

“These days, Android and iOS have built-in parent control features that can help you monitor and control your child’s phone via the Internet worldwide.”

The Android built-in parenting feature is called Family Link, while the iPhone function is called Screen Time; both of these can be set by going into the device settings. These functions can help you monitor the downloaded apps, view their usage time reports, block/restrict apps, get details about search history, and so on. 

Parental control apps

Parental control apps are reliable software with advanced features and tools to digitally monitor the kid’s activities.

These parent control apps work a lot better than SafeSearch & extension tools. You can see the example of FlashGet Kids as it is regarded as the best among all because it contains many advanced features.

• Content-filtering feature, which prevents users from accessing websites containing pornographic content or other morally offensive data.

• It allows parents to block websites or apps on their kids’ devices to provide a healthy online search.

• A “Sync app notification” feature that detects and blocks inappropriate or harmful notifications from different apps.

• Apart from these, FlashGet Kids uses a keyword filtering algorithm to scan different web pages, images, and videos against specific keywords or phrases related to toxic content. Thus, if you delete any explicit content, it blocks access to those websites or removes the content.

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