topic Re: Safeguard with custom SSID in My Router

Safeguard with custom SSID

timbohn — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 12:12:13 GMT

Has anyone experienced this.

Did a factory reset on my router to get Safeguard working (as per support's suggestion).

When I then went in and changed my SSID to our usual family one, Safeguard stopped working.

Haven't tried doing a factory reset again to see if starts working again, but I bet it would.

How can an SSID influence whether content blocking works?

This is a major issue for me, selected PlusNet because of the Safeguard feature.

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

MisterW — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 12:57:29 GMT

How can an SSID influence whether content blocking works?

@timbohn simple answer, it doesn't!.

Safeguard works by changing the default DNS servers that the router obtains when it makes the connection. It's not necessary to factory reset to effect any change to the Safeguard setting BUT it is necessary to restart the router.

As long as your devices use the default DNS settings and you haven't made any changes to the Hub 2 DNS settings then Safeguard should work as long as you have enabled it on your account.

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

timbohn — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 13:04:51 GMT

Relying on DNS for content blocking seems pretty pointless to me.

Any teenager with the smallest technical knowledge can switch their device to use Google's DNS servers.

In any case: not changed DNS settings on router or my laptop, Safeguard enabled.... and does not work.

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

MisterW — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 13:16:12 GMT

Relying on DNS for content blocking seems pretty pointless to me.

@timbohn couldn't possibly comment, but that's how it works!

Check on the Hub 2 that your connection is picking up the Safeguard servers,

they are 213.120.234.38 & 213.120.234.42

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

timbohn — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 14:46:19 GMT

"Check on the Hub 2 that your connection is picking up the Safeguard servers,

they are 213.120.234.38 & 213.120.234.42"

Yes it's using those servers.

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

MisterW — Mon, 08 Jul 2024 15:05:39 GMT

@timbohn in that case Safeguard seems to be active.

TBH I've never used it myself but

Is it Categories its not blocking or specific websites you have added ?

Do you have a Timer set that Safeguard is only active at certain times ?

On your laptop you can check that the Safeguard DNS servers are working by using nslookup.

Use nslookup <url> to use the default servers

Use nslookup <url> 212.159.13.49 to use the normal Plusnet server

Use nslookup <url> 213.120.234.38 to use the Safeguard server

Check with one of the url's you're expecting to be blocked

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

timbohn — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 09:00:18 GMT

An update on this one.

Did a factory reset on the router again and as I suspected Safeguard started working.

I then went into the Admin Panel and made one small change (updated the WiFi password) and lo and behold Safeguard stopped working.

Seems as if a config change on the router causes the issue.

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

timbohn — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 09:13:14 GMT

Another update.

Used nsklookup as suggested to query the two DNS Servers (PlusNet and Safeguard) to see if they resolved a blocked site (used the most common adult site to test).

Both DNS Servers DID returned the correct IP.

So the issue must be with my account at Safeguard.

Note: I also manually blocked that site in the "Block websites" option.

I've also one in and cycled the Safeguard settings in my PlusNet account area, this didn't do anything.

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

dvorak — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 10:26:04 GMT

Moderators Note

This topic has been moved from Broadband to My Router

Re: Safeguard with custom SSID

bobpullen — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 10:56:35 GMT

@timbohn wrote:
How can an SSID influence whether content blocking works?

I concur, it can't.

However, what devices are you testing from? Some modern smartphones offer services like Private Relay / Private DNS, and these are sometimes set at the SSID layer. Could it be that a certain SSID that is saved to e.g. a smartphone has such a feature enabled, whereas the saved default SSID does not?

Or a certain saved SSID has third-party DNS servers explicitly configured?

That said, your latest post suggests the service isn't working at all.