School Web Filter Test: Check Which Categories Your Filter Blocks
Run this school internet filter test from any device on your network. In about 20 seconds you get a category scorecard: what your filter blocks, what gets through, and what to check against your policy.
Nothing is installed and nothing is sent to us. The page tries to load a tiny site icon from known domains and reports what your filter allowed.
Test my school filter now
Pick the profile you expect this device to have, add an optional label for your printout, then start. Run it once on a student account and once on a staff account to compare policies.
Social networking
Not runVideo streaming
Not runGaming
Not runAI chatbots
Not runVPN / proxy
Not runFile sharing / P2P
Not runGambling
Not runDating
Not runAdult
Not runShopping
Not runNews (control)
Not runReference (control)
Not runMalware / phishing
Not testedSecurity vendors publish harmless test addresses, but they are built to be opened in a browser tab, not loaded as an icon. An icon probe would mislead you, so this category is left out. Use the test page your filter vendor provides and read our guide to malware and phishing protection for schools.
How this school internet filter test works
The tool behaves like a student browser asking for a resource. Your filter decides whether that request succeeds, and the page simply watches the outcome.
Request a tiny icon
For each category the page asks for the favicon of two well known domains, with a cache-busting tag so an old cached copy cannot fake a pass.
Wait up to 6 seconds
If the icon arrives, the domain is marked Reachable. If the request fails or times out, the domain is marked as stopped.
Combine per category
Both domains stopped means Blocked. Both loaded means Reachable. One of each means Partial, which usually points to a per-domain rule.
Compare to your profile
Each category result is compared with what most districts expect for the profile you picked, and anything unexpected is flagged for review.
The test domains, category by category
| Category | Domains probed | Why these were chosen |
|---|---|---|
| Social networking | www.facebook.com, www.instagram.com | The two social platforms most often named in school social media policies. |
| Video streaming | www.youtube.com, www.twitch.tv | One mainstream video site used in lessons and one live streaming site that is usually off-task. |
| Gaming | www.roblox.com, store.steampowered.com | A game platform popular with younger students and a large game store. |
| AI chatbots | chatgpt.com, claude.ai | Two widely used general chat assistants that district AI policies often address. |
| VPN / proxy | nordvpn.com, www.expressvpn.com | Commercial VPN brands students search for when they want to bypass the filter. |
| File sharing / P2P | www.bittorrent.com, www.utorrent.com | Home sites of common torrent clients. Blocking them is the first layer of P2P control. |
| Gambling | www.bet365.com, www.draftkings.com | Large betting brands that advertise heavily to young audiences. |
| Dating | tinder.com, www.match.com | Two of the most recognised dating services. |
| Adult | Adult test domain (not named) | One mainstream, widely known adult site. Only its icon is requested and nothing is displayed. |
| Shopping | www.amazon.com, www.ebay.com | Large retail and marketplace sites, often allowed for research and purchasing. |
| News (control) | www.bbc.com, apnews.com | News sources that almost every school allows. They show the test itself is working. |
| Reference (control) | www.wikipedia.org, www.britannica.com | Reference sites that should load for every student. A second control rules out one-off failures. |
What a favicon test can and cannot tell you
This is a fast approximation, not an audit. Treat a surprising result as a lead to confirm, not as proof.
HTTPS inspection changes the picture
Filters that inspect encrypted traffic can block a page but let its icon through, or the reverse. A filter without inspection sees only the domain name.
DNS filtering blocks whole domains
A DNS filter answers for the full hostname, so the icon and every page fail together. That makes DNS results clear, but it cannot see paths. See web filtering vs DNS filtering.
Policies differ by user and group
A filter may apply different rules by grade, by login or by time of day. A test on one account says nothing about another account on the same network.
Extensions and privacy settings interfere
Ad blockers, strict tracking protection and some antivirus tools can stop icons from loading. That shows as Blocked even when your filter allowed the domain.
Sites protect themselves too
Some sites challenge automated requests or move their icon. One stopped domain in a category can be the site, not your filter. Partial results deserve a manual check.
Off-campus is a different path
A Chromebook at home may use an agent or extension instead of the school network. Run the test at home on a managed device to see that path. Our guide on enforcing CIPA off campus explains the options.
Two domains are a sample, not coverage
Big brands are the easy case. The real gap is the long tail: new gaming mirrors, fresh proxy sites and newly registered domains. Spot-check those with the domain category checker.
Block pages look like failures
When a filter returns a block page instead of the icon, the browser cannot read it as an image. The tool counts that as Blocked, which is the right call.
What your scorecard means for CIPA
CIPA asks for a technology protection measure that blocks visual depictions that are obscene, child sexual abuse material or harmful to minors on computers used by minors. Everything else on the scorecard is a local policy decision.
| Category | CIPA connection | Typical student setting | If it shows Reachable |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adult | Core mandate directly tied to the protection measure | Blocked for everyone on student devices | Act today: check the category is enabled for this group and that the device is actually behind the filter. |
| VPN / proxy | Protects the mandate bypass tools defeat every other rule | Blocked | High priority: an open proxy category lets students route around adult blocking. |
| Gambling | Harmful to minors by many local definitions | Blocked | Review policy: most districts block it for all students. |
| Dating | Child safety and contact risk | Blocked | Review policy: dating sites can expose minors to adult contact and imagery. |
| File sharing / P2P | Indirect: unfiltered content and malware | Blocked | Review: P2P clients move files your filter cannot inspect. |
| AI chatbots | Local policy, plus image generation risk | Varies: blocked, allowed or allowed for approved tools only | Compare with your AI policy. See the AI tools blocklist for schools. |
| Social, video, gaming | Not required by CIPA | Varies by grade and time of day | Only an issue if your written policy says otherwise. |
| Shopping | Not required by CIPA | Often allowed, sometimes restricted for younger grades | Usually fine. Confirm it matches what your board approved. |
| News, reference | Should stay open for research | Allowed | Expected. If these show Blocked, you may be over-blocking or the test is being disrupted. |
Three result patterns and what each one means
Most results fall into one of three patterns. Find yours and follow the matching column.
Adult or VPN reachable
- Confirm the device is on the filtered network or has the filtering agent active.
- Check that the user is in the right policy group, not a staff or bypass group.
- Open the filter console and search the domain in your logs.
- If the domain is uncategorized in your filter, that is a coverage gap to raise with your vendor.
- Record the date, time and fix for your CIPA evidence folder.
Partial or unexpected
- Run the test again and try a second browser without extensions.
- A Partial usually means one domain is on a manual allow or block list.
- Compare the result with the written policy for this grade band.
- Check whether a time-of-day or classroom rule was active during the test.
- Ask teachers whether the current setting supports their lessons.
Everything as expected
- Print the summary and file it with your compliance records.
- Repeat the test off campus on a take-home device.
- Repeat on a staff account to confirm adults get their wider policy.
- Spot-check five newly launched sites in the categories you block.
- Schedule the next test, for example at the start of each term.
What a district should do next
A one-off test is useful. A small testing routine is far more useful, because policies drift, devices change and new sites appear every day.
- Week 1
Test every policy path
Run the test on each device type and each policy group: elementary student, secondary student, staff, guest Wi-Fi and a take-home device off campus.
- Week 1
Write down what you expected
For each category, note the intended setting per group. A test only means something when you compare it with a written intention.
- Week 2
Fix the gaps in order of risk
Adult and bypass categories first, then categories your policy names, then convenience settings. Keep a short note of each change.
- Week 2
Test the long tail, not just big brands
Check new proxy and game mirror sites that students share. If many come back uncategorized, ask how often your filter's category data is refreshed.
- Each term
Repeat and file the printout
A dated summary from each term shows that the technology protection measure was in place and checked, which helps when questions come up.
- At renewal
Use results in vendor conversations
Bring your findings to renewal talks. Our guides on how to choose a school web filter and how much a school web filter costs help you ask the right questions.
Checklist for a fair web filter test
Small details change the outcome. Use this list so that results from different buildings can be compared.
- Use a real student account, not an admin account with bypass rights.
- Use the managed browser students actually use, with the normal extensions.
- Disable any personal ad blocker on test machines you control.
- Test during school hours if your filter has time-based rules.
- Note the building, network name and device type in the label field.
- Run the test twice and keep the second result if the first was interrupted.
- Check that both controls pass before trusting the rest of the scorecard.
- Confirm surprising results in your filter's own logs.
- Repeat on guest Wi-Fi, which is often filtered by a different policy.
- Keep printouts with your policy and hearing records.
Why category coverage decides the real result
Your filter blocks what it can recognise. A category rule is only as good as the list of domains sitting under it.
Big sites are the easy part
Every filter knows the top brands in each category. Students rarely get caught out there. They find the mirror, the clone and the site launched last week.
New domains need fast categories
Our category database adds about 300,000 newly registered domains a day and checks each again after a week and a month, because many sites add content after launch.
One site, several categories
A domain can carry several categories ranked by how much of the site they describe. That lets a filter block the harmful part of the web without over-blocking the useful part.
58 categories to build policy on
The full web filtering categories taxonomy covers adult, bypass tools, AI tools, gaming, streaming and more, across 120 million categorized domains.
Need a filter that runs on this category data? Our hosted CIPA filter is built for districts, and the category database is available to edtech and filter vendors.
School web filter test FAQ
Is this school web filter test safe to run on a student device?
Yes. The test only fetches a small site icon from each test domain. It never opens the sites, never shows their content and never sends your results anywhere. The adult test domain is not named on the page.
Why does a category show Blocked when my filter allows it?
A browser extension, a privacy setting, a slow connection or the test site's own bot protection can stop an icon from loading. Run it again, try a second browser and confirm in your filter logs.
Does a passing result mean my school is CIPA compliant?
No. CIPA compliance needs a technology protection measure, an adopted internet safety policy, monitoring and online safety education. This test is one quick check on the technology part. Use our CIPA compliance checklist for the rest.
Does the test collect or send any data?
No. Everything runs in your browser. There is no analytics on the tool, no form submission and no upload. The printable summary is generated on your device.
Why is there no malware test?
Vendor test addresses for malware and phishing are designed to be opened in a browser tab, not loaded as an icon. An icon test would give misleading results, so we leave that to your vendor's own test page.
Can students use this to find gaps?
They can only learn which of a few famous domains load, which they could find out by typing them. The test gives staff a structured way to see the same thing first and close the gaps.
How is this different from monitoring or classroom tools?
This tests the filter layer only. Monitoring and classroom management sit on top of it and see different things, as our guide to web filtering vs monitoring vs classroom management explains.
Found gaps in your school filter?
Tell us what the test showed and how your district is set up. We will talk through category coverage, off-campus devices and how our hosted filter fits your policy.
Talk to us about your district- 120 million categorized domains in 58 categories
- About 300,000 new domains categorized each day
- AI tools set with 11,800+ domains in 18 categories
- Validation reports on CIPA category accuracy for licence holders
Trademark notice: all product, company and site names shown on this page, including the test domains, are trademarks of their respective owners. They are used only to identify the sites and products being tested. CIPA Web Filtering is not affiliated with, sponsored or endorsed by any of these companies, and no logos are displayed.