How to Bypass Internet Restrictions and View Any Website

Last Updated: December 26, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Rain Kengly. Rain is a tech writer and editor for wikiHow with over 5 years of professional writing experience. In the past, Rain has worked with other creative writers as a Writing Tutor at San Francisco State University and has published gaming features, guides, and news articles for a variety of media outlets. Rain shares a lifelong passion for writing and gaming and is eager to grow alongside new tech inventions.
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Unblocking Websites at Home, School, and Work

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   Use a Virtual Private Network (VPN). If you're able to edit your computer's network connections (e.g., select a Wi-Fi network to connect to), you can most likely set your computer to use a VPN. Keep in mind that you must first select and pay for a VPN service before you can use most VPNs.

   • VPNs can be used on mobile platforms (e.g., smartphones or tablets) and computers.
   • One free VPN option is Hotspot Shield. If you can download and install Hotspot Shield on your selected computer, you can turn it on without having to configure it in your computer's settings.
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   Use a proxy website. Proxies are essentially miniature VPNs that apply only to the browser tab in which they're open. When you enter a request (e.g., a website's address) in a proxy site's search bar, the request is routed through several different servers (but not the one on which your normal Internet connection is located) to circumvent the current server's restrictions.

   • Select a proxy service, such as:
     • HideMe - https://hide.me/en/proxy
     • ProxySite - https://www.proxysite.com/
     • ProxFree - https://www.proxfree.com/
     • Whoer - https://whoer.net/webproxy
   • Click the proxy site's search bar.
   • Enter the blocked website's URL into the proxy's search bar.
   • Use the website. Your site should load like it does when browsing on an unrestricted computer, though it may take longer due to the proxy's server location.
   • Keep in mind that while proxies hide your traffic from your web administrator, the proxy host can see all of the information you submit. Avoid entering sensitive information while on the proxy's site.

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   Use the cached version of a website in Google Chrome. Google keeps data from previously visited websites to make them load faster the next time you open them. If you're now blocked from a website, you can try to view the cached version. Do the following:

   • Use Google search to find the blocked website you want to visit.
   • Click ⋮ or the down-arrow next to the website.
   • Click Cached.
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   Try a URL shortener to change the URL. If something is blocking the website's URL address, you may be able to bypass it with a shortened URL. Do the following:

   • Go to https://tinyurl.com/ in a web browser.[1] X Research source
   • Copy and paste the blocked URL into the field.
   • Click Get your link to copy it to your clipboard.
   • Paste the link into your browser's address bar and press Enter.

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   Try visiting an alternative version of a website. Some web restrictions block specific web addresses (e.g., www.facebook.com) without blocking variations of the address. You may be able to bypass specific domain blocks by using one of the following variations on the site's address:

   • IP address - If you can find the website's IP address, you may be able to enter the IP address in the address bar as a way of circumventing the web restrictions.
   • Mobile site - By placing a m. between the "www." and the rest of the website's address (e.g., www.m.facebook.com), you can open the mobile version of the website. The mobile version often must be blocked separately from the regular version, so some web restrictions miss this exploit.
   • Google Translate - In rare cases, you can go to https://translate.google.com/ and enter your website's address in the left-most box, select a new language for the right-most box, and click the link in the right-most box to open the website in a different language.
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   Use a cellular data connection. If you have a supported iPhone or Android smartphone, you can use a process called "tethering" to use your phone's cellular data connection as a Wi-Fi network. This method is relatively guaranteed as long as your computer allows you to select a network.

   • Keep in mind that tethering takes up a significant amount of cellular data, especially if you're downloading files or streaming video.
   • The linked article references tethering on a laptop, but the same instructions will work for a desktop computer.

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   Connect directly to the modem. You can bypass most network restrictions by attaching your computer to the modem via Ethernet. Naturally, you shouldn't do this if you don't have permission to access the modem.

   • The modem is usually separate from the router. If your Internet connection uses a router/modem combo, this method most likely won't work for you.
   • This method is most effective for home Internet connections rather than school, work, or public connections.
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   Make sure that you can use a portable browser on your computer. To use Tor, a browser with a built-in proxy, you'll need to install it onto a flash drive that you can then plug into the restricted computer. For this to work, there are a couple of other conditions to meet:

   • The restricted computer must have at least one USB port.
   • The restricted computer must allow you to open files from a flash drive.
   • Your portable browser must be installed on the flash drive, not just stored on the flash drive.
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   Plug a flash drive into an unrestricted computer. It should plug into one of your computer's USB ports.
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   Open the Tor download page. Go to https://www.torproject.org/download/download-easy.html.en in your browser.
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   Click DOWNLOAD. It's a purple button in the middle of the page. The Tor setup file will download onto your computer.

   • If prompted to choose a download location, click your flash drive's name and skip the next step.
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   Move the Tor setup file onto your flash drive. Go to the folder into which the setup file downloaded, then do the following:

   • Click the file to select it.
   • Press Ctrl+X (Windows) or ⌘ Command+X (Mac) to copy the file and remove it from its current location.
   • Click your flash drive's name on the left side of the window.
   • Click a blank space in the flash drive's window.
   • Press Ctrl+V (Windows) or ⌘ Command+V (Mac) to paste the file into your flash drive.
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   Install Tor on your flash drive. You'll do this by selecting the flash drive where Tor is installed. To do so:

   • Windows - Double-click the Tor EXE file, select a language and click OK, click Browse..., select your flash drive's name and click OK, click Install, and uncheck both boxes and click Finish when prompted.
   • Mac - Double-click the Tor DMG file, verify the download if necessary, and follow any additional instructions on-screen, making sure to select your flash drive as the location onto which to install Tor.
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   Eject your flash drive. Once Tor is installed, you can safely remove the flash drive from your computer.
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   Plug your flash drive into a restricted computer. This should be the computer on which you want to open a blocked website.
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   Open Tor. Go to your flash drive's folder, double-click the "Tor Browser" folder, and double-click the green-and-purple "Start Tor Browser" icon. You should see the Tor launcher window appear.
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    Click Connect. It's at the bottom of the launcher. After a moment, the Tor window will open.

    • Tor resembles an old version of Firefox.
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    Go to a blocked site. Use the text box in the middle of the Tor welcome page to do so. Since Tor opens with a built-in proxy, you should be able to visit any site.

    • The text box in the middle of the page uses a search engine called DuckDuckGo.
    • Keep in mind that site load times will increase because your browser traffic is routed through different servers.
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   Figure out the source of the web restrictions. Depending on the source of the web restrictions (e.g., a school network versus parental controls), the strength of the web restrictions will vary:

   • Public web restrictions, such as those found in coffee shops or on parental-controlled computers, can sometimes be bypassed with most of the general strategies in this section.
   • Regional web restrictions, such as the ones found on some YouTube content, typically require a proxy or VPN to access.
   • School, government, and other workplace-style web restrictions are usually foolproof enough that you'll need to employ a proxy or portable browser. You can still try using cellular data to tether your computer.
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   Use multiple VPNs or proxies. In most cases, the VPN or proxy service you're trying to use may already be blocked. Continue trying newer services to access the blocked website.

   • If you're using a proxy service, make sure you don't enter any sensitive or personal information, such as passwords.
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