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January 2, 2025 / All Posts, How to / By Crysta Timmerman

These tips to unblock websites at school should come in handy when you need to bypass internet filters.

School internet filters are implemented with good intentions and serve a valid purpose. They prevent students from wandering too far into the darker corners of the web with school resources, while still providing access to information and (usually) some entertainment. But sometimes the internet filters at school can be overzealous in their implementation. 

With too many heavy-handed restrictions, school internet filters can be the roadblock to a term paper submission, access to controversial research information, and yes, even YouTube. 

So, if you find yourself blocked from websites on your quest to access the information superhighway, we’ve got plenty of tips to help you bypass school Wi-Fi restrictions and severe filtering. 

1. Use HTTPS and WWW (or don’t)

Difficulty: Low
Privacy: Low
Implementation: In browser
Cost: Free

One of the easiest ways to bypass school filtering is to simply change “http” to “https” in a URL address bar. 

This works because most filters restrict access to websites by blacklisting domains through specific ports. HTTP uses internet port 80, while HTTPS uses port 443. And though a website may be blocked on one port, it could easily be open on another. By adding an ‘s’ to the “http” portion of a URL (or removing it if it’s already there), you can force your connection to go through the opposite port, which may be unblocked. 

So, if you’re simply struggling to access YouTube or Gmail, this might be the quick fix you need.

A similar trick to unblock websites at school would be to add or remove the “www” preceding a URL to access a site. 

2. Try an ‘unblocking’ website to fake a proxy

Difficulty: Low
Privacy: Low
Implementation: In browser
Cost: Free

If the HTTPS trick mentioned earlier doesn’t unblock websites at school for you, or the website you’re trying to access doesn’t offer an HTTPS connection, an unblocking website would be the second easiest solution. While Anonymouse.org is semi-reliable 20 years later, and ProxySite, gives you a few free page views, most results for “unblocking sites” are full of ads and spam. 

Fortunately, some popular tools on the web can still fill the role of an unblocking website. You just need to think outside of the box; consider site translators and developer tools to help you bypass school filtering. 

Google Translate

Though really any live translation service should be able to help unblock websites at school, Google Translate is the household name for free site translations. Just set your translation from English to English, type in the website you want to access, and click through the URL. You’ll be able to view your end destination through the translation frame. 

WAVE Accessibility Tool

Web accessibility tools help the people who make websites to adjust settings for the visually impaired. While these accessibility checkers usually include a layer of indicators where improvements can be made, WAVE is a favorite because you can disable the accessibility results, giving you a better browsing experience.

3. Use cached data

Difficulty: Low
Privacy: Low
Implementation: In browser
Cost: Free

If the first two methods don’t help with bypassing school Wi-Fi, and you’re hesitant to change any settings or download something new, consider accessing an older version of the website. As long as the site you wish to visit has been around for a while and you don’t need to access its most current iteration (or, you don’t need to log in to something), a cached copy of the site may offer just what you need. 

In a sense, websites are really just like files that are copied across the web. And sometimes, old copies of that site file are stored in archives.

Google Cache

While the Google Cache is not as ubiquitous as the other Google services, you’ve definitely seen it in action. On most results in Google, you’ll see three vertical dots to the right of a URL string. Select that shape, and an additional panel will appear, including a “Cached” button.

Choosing a cached page will adjust the URL so that it appears after the webcache domain,: “https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:yoururlhere.com.” Much like the “unblocking” sites would do, Google is essentially acting as a proxy for you to see an older version of the page.

Wayback Machine

Similar to Google Cache is the Wayback Machine, also known as the Internet Archive. It’s a bit slower compared to Google Cache, but with the added ability to choose your archival date in time, it offers a more thorough selection. These URLs also change by appearing after the archive domain and date: “https://web.archive.org/web/20210302045919/https://www.yoururlhere”

4. Use a Tor-enabled browser 

Difficulty: Low
Privacy: Low
Implementation: In browser (Tor, Brave) 
Cost: Free

It’s quite likely that your school blocks access to the official Tor Browser from the Tor Project because of its association with the dark web. But even assuming you cannot download the Tor browser directly, the Brave browser provides native Tor integrations these days.

First, install the Brave browser. Then, simply open a new browser window with Tor, similar to how you’d open an Incognito window.

When you use the Tor network to browse the web, your traffic is taken on an equivalent of a virtual scenic route through multiple nodes all around the world. This process makes it almost impossible for a regular website to know where the request originated, so it’s unlikely to get caught in any blocking filters. But so much travel makes a connection exceedingly slow. And Tor is neither anonymous nor inherently safe. So ensure that you’re not handling sensitive data when you’re using it to unblock websites at school. 

Learn More: Tor vs VPN: Which One’s Better? Read the Expert Guide

The tips mentioned up to this point are quick and dirty tricks that help in a pinch. But if bypassing school Wi-Fi filters is becoming a necessary habit, consider investing in a service that evades undue censorship reliably. 

5. Use a VPN 

Difficulty: Low
Privacy: High
Implementation: Download application
Cost: Monthly or Annual Fee

A VPN is a technology that encrypts your data and changes your IP by routing all of your internet traffic through the server of your choosing. 

You can simply download VPN software onto a device. From there it’s easy to activate the VPN with an on/off button in order to unblock websites at school as you need. 

VPN services like IPVanish provide network infrastructure, keep the servers well-maintained, and offer support when things don’t work quite right. These are just some of the reasons we don’t recommend a free VPN. 

Some advanced internet filters may even detect and block VPN activity. This is called deep packet inspection, and it’s a censorship technique harnessed by schools, institutions, workplaces, and even entire regions. 

If VPN traffic ever is detected while using IPVanish, just switch your connection protocol within Settings to “OpenVPN” and enable the “OpenVPN Scramble” option. This helps to make VPN traffic undetectable. 

6. Try a proxy

Difficulty: Medium
Privacy: Low
Implementation: Manual configuration; Browser add-on
Cost: Free

In some of our earlier tips, we recreated the idea of a proxy that didn’t require system adjustments or downloads. But sometimes that just won’t cut it. 

It’s an oversimplification, but think of a proxy as a technological middleman; it makes requests to a website on behalf of a specific user application. A proxy is sort of like a VPN in that it sends your traffic through a server before directing it to an end location, but the process is handled much differently under the hood. For starters, there’s less privacy protection and no encryption with a proxy. Of equal importance is that a proxy only works within the application it is configured in — unlike a VPN which secures an entire connection.

Learn More: VPN vs Proxy – What’s The Difference? Read Our Guide

SOCKS5 proxy

Included with all IPVanish subscriptions is a SOCKS5 proxy. After logging in to your user Control Panel, you can generate a set of SOCKS5 proxy credentials unique to you. 

Take those proxy credentials to the app you want the proxy to run in — like Firefox, a game engine, or a file download client — set up the proxy within the advanced connection settings, and confirm your changes.

Proxy browser extension

We have strong opinions about the personal costs of using any “free” service on the internet, but if data security is a non-issue, this may be a helpful solution for a short while. 

There are a wide variety of proxy add-ons and extensions available for popular web browsers, but read reviews and approach them with caution. Many of these free tools have been known to collect the data of unsuspecting users. If you’re looking for a browser extension solution, we recommend the free proxy from our sister site, StrongVPN.  

7. Change your DNS

Difficulty: Medium
Privacy: Low
Implementation: Manual configuration 
Cost: Free, Monthly, or Annual Fee

Your DNS (Domain Name Server) is like an address book provided by your ISP (or the ISP of your school, rather) to help guide your page requests from your device and back to your browser. And, if the DNS of your device is filtering your access to the World Wide Web, then it’s time to change it.

With a new DNS address set, either from a SmartDNS service or from a third party like Google, you can reroute your DNS requests through another server and bypass filtered content. Simply navigate to your device connection settings and reset the DNS address.

Google DNS

Normally your devices use the DNS servers provided by your ISP, but you can choose a different DNS provider instead. Google and Oracle both offer public DNS addresses for free browsing. Just consider the potential privacy risks and security ramifications of having a third party handle your DNS requests for “free.” 

SmartDNS 

Alternatively, instead of using a free service where your DNS requests could be intercepted and hijacked, consider investing in a reliable alternative, like the smart DNS provided by our sister brand, Strong. 

8. Use IPVanish’s Secure Browser

Difficulty: Easy
Privacy: Medium
Implementation: Browser extension 
Cost: Free 

IPVanish Secure Browser is a powerful tool that integrates seamlessly with Chrome, Firefox, and Edge to block online threats and tracking. It runs entirely in the cloud, isolating your activity and protecting your device from viruses and malware. With automatic history deletion and zero browser fingerprinting, your browsing session remains truly closed, leaving no trace behind.

In conclusion

There are many ways to evade restrictive web filters, all with varying costs and implementation requirements. Keep in mind that there may be some repercussions if you unblock websites at school due to pre-existing rules. 

But as long as you’re aware of any risks you face from accessing censored information and use discretion in the content you access, then these tips to bypass school internet filters should come in the clutch when you need them most.

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