Apple web filter

[Ipadonly1]

Hi all,

TLDR: how is Apple’s built-in web filter managed? How is it updated and improved and how frequently?



For a while I’ve been using a DNS service to filter web content on my iPhone, having switched from Apple’s own “limit adult content’ setting. I found Apple’s own filter to be really annoying and blocked many innocuous sites and pages. I found the DNS service i used to be much more accurate.

I would however prefer web traffic to be filtered on device as I can install it through a permanent profile and it can’t be bypassed (the iPhone is supervised). I have explored plug-in web content filters via profiles, but it seems these only work for proper MDM/Apple Business accounts and I don’t want to/probably can’t get into all that as I’m not a business.

I’ve switched back to apple’s ‘built-in’ filter just in Screen Time and I’ve noticed that a couple of completely innocuous sites it used to block (high street clothes stores) are now let through.

I’m still apprehensive about relying on Apple’s own filter. I want a ‘set it and forget it’ situation with web filtering, but not feel restricted by Apple’s trigger happy approach to filtering.

My question to anyone who might know is how is Apple’s built-in web filter managed? How is it updated and improved and how frequently?

Thank you

 

[Shoitah]

I've had some success getting MDM profiles installed without an Apple Business Manager account. The information online seems to indicate that you need an ABM account, but I was able to set up an open enrolled MDM just fine with a regular iCloud account.
Personally, I am also interested in setting up web filtering on apple devices through profiles. How have you been going about it?