How does sophos web protection work

By default, web protection is enabled: access to malicious websites is blocked, downloaded content is scanned and the reputation of downloaded files is checked. For more information about the web protection settings and how to change them, see Configure Sophos Web Protection.

Web content accessed via an unsupported browser is not filtered and will not be blocked. Content scanning Content scanning scans data and files downloaded from the internet or intranet and proactively detects malicious content. Download reputation Download reputation is calculated based on the file's age, source, prevalence, deep content analysis and other characteristics.

Note Download reputation is supported only on Windows 7 and later. Note Download reputation is calculated based on the data in the SophosLabs' in-the-cloud database and requires Sophos Live Protection to be enabled in order to perform lookups and obtain the data.

By default, Sophos Live Protection is enabled. Live URL filtering. Free Download No credit card required. Buy Now -. Enterprise-level web protection for PCs and Macs The internet has become a critical part of our lives.

Sophos Home Premium delivers web protection with:. Advanced Web Filter. Anti-Ransomware Security. It blocks ransomware attacks on your Macs and rolls back any data tampering. Real-Time Threat Protection. Sophos Home actively seeks out and analyzes suspicious behaviors and activities on your PCs to deliver best-in-class protection against viruses, malware, worms, PUAs, and other known and unknown threats.

Web pages related to gambling that do not allow betting online are not included: see "Gambling Related". Web pages that offer information relevant to gambling, without providing the means to do so.

Examples include gambling links, tips, sports picks, lottery results, as well as horse, car, or boat racing. Casino-related Web pages will fall under this site if they do not offer online gambling. Web pages providing fantasy or fictitious representations of violence within the context of games, comics, cartoons, or graphic novels.

This includes images and textual descriptions of physical assaults or hand-to-hand combat, as well as grave injury and destruction caused by weapons or explosives. Web pages that offer online games and related information such as cheats, codes, demos, emulators, online contests or role-playing games, gaming clans, game manufacturer sites, fantasy or virtual sports leagues, and other gaming sites without chances of profit.

Gaming consoles, such as X-Box and PlayStation, are included in this category. Web pages that provide online news media, such as international or regional news broadcasting and publication.

Portal sites that provide news content are covered under this category. Web pages that contain content maintained by governmental or military organizations, such as government branches or agencies, police departments, fire departments, civil defense, counterterrorism organizations, or supranational organizations, such as the United Nations or the European Union.

Military and veterans medical facilities are included in this category. Web pages with content that can be considered tasteless, gross, shocking, or gruesome. Some examples include tasteless humor, bodily excretory functions, graphic medical or accident scene photos containing blood or wounds , extreme forms of body modification cutting, branding, or genital piercing , or shocking depictions of inhumane animal treatment.

This category does not contain Web pages with content pertaining to physical assault; see "Violence". Web pages that provide "how-to" directions, or otherwise enable, fraud, crime, or malicious activity that is computer oriented. Web pages related to computer crime include malicious hacking information or tools that help individuals gain unauthorized access to computers and networks root kits, kiddy scripts.

Also included are other areas of electronic fraud such as dialer scams and illegal manipulation of electronic devices. Illegal software does not fall under this category; see "Illegal Software". Web pages that provide information that would encourage the oppression of a specific group of individuals. This includes promoting, explicitly or implicitly, an agenda against groups based on race, religion, nationality, gender, age, disability, or sexual orientation.

Political parties with a specific hate-based agenda may be included. If involving jokes or humor, the focus of the entire site must be considered hateful or discriminatory to fall under this category.

This category is intended to cover all health related information and health care services. Health information includes topics designed to improve an individual's well-being, whether it be physical or mental health diet, nutrition, fitness, or parenting.

Health care services include health care providers such as health insurance, hospitals, clinics, and independent physicians. Content that denounces or offers different interpretations of significant historical facts, such as holocaust denial.

Some sites in this category may have a legitimate academic value, however many of these sites include illegitimate manipulation of history for political purposes. This category is not intended to include all reexamination of historical facts, but is limited to historical events that are highly sensitive.

This category is designed for content suitable for higher education, while the Education category is designed for primary education. For example, a site with Holocaust photos may be offensive, yet have academic value.

Web pages providing content intended to be comical or funny. These sites include jokes, sketches, comics, and satire pages. Web pages that offer information to pirate or illegally distribute software or electronic media, such as copyrighted music or film, distribution of illegal license key generators, software cracks, and serial numbers.

Web pages that contain child sexual abuse content hosted anywhere in the world, and criminally obscene and incitement to racial hatred content hosted in the UK. Web pages that contain non-pornographic images of the bare human body like those found in classic sculpture and paintings, or medical images.

This category is designed for use as a selective blocking category to allow or block sites in order to address cultural or geographic differences in opinion about nudity.

For example, use this category when you want to block access to nudity, but allow access when it is not the primary focus of a site, such as news sites or major portals. Web pages that have a legitimate purpose to provide information about data protection. This applies to detailed information intended to safeguard business or personal data, intellectual property, privacy, and infrastructure on the Internet, private networks, or in other bandwidth services such as telecommunications.

The following are not included: Legitimate information security companies and security software providers, such as virus protection companies.

This category includes detailed information for safeguarding business or personal data, intellectual property, privacy, and infrastructure on the Internet, private networks, or in other bandwidth services such as telecommunications. This category does not include: Legitimate information security companies and security software providers, such as virus protection companies. Sites that intend to exploit security or teach how to bypass security. Web pages that provide software for real-time communication over a network exclusively for users who have been invited to join a member's contact list or an instant messaging session.

Most instant messaging software includes features such as file transfer, PC-to-PC phone calls, and tracking of when other people log on and off. Web pages that provide access to live or interactive Web applications, such as browser-based office suites and groupware. Sites categorized as Interactive Web Applications include those with business, academic, or individual focus.

Sites providing access to interactive Web applications that do not take critical user data or offer security risks are excluded, such as Google Maps. Sites that focus primarily on Web meetings for business use are categorized as Web Meetings.

Web pages that provide software or access to continuous audio or video broadcasting, such as Internet radio, TV programming, or podcasting. Quick downloads and shorter streams that present less bandwidth compromise fall under Streaming Media or Media Downloads. Web pages that provide services for publication and maintenance of Internet sites such as Web design, domain registration, Internet Service Providers, and broadband and telecommunications companies that provide Web services. Web utilities such as statistics and access logs are included, as well as Web graphics like clip art.

Web pages related to a job search including sites concerned with resume writing, interviewing, changing careers, classified advertising, and large job databases. It also includes corporate Web pages listing job openings, salary comparison sites, temporary employment, company job posting sites. Make money at home sites fall under the Business or Online Shopping categories.

This category includes sites that cover religious content such as discussion, beliefs, non-controversial commentary, articles, and information for local congregations such as a church or synagogue homepage. This category does not include sites with content about other religions and ideologies, such as comparative religion. This category includes downloadable files like screensavers, toolbars and file-sharing programs that contain adware, spyware, viruses and other malicious computer code.

The effects can include slower computer speeds, theft of passwords, and the loss or damage of valuable personal files. A URL that contains malicious content or is not from a legitimate host server. For example, the URL may contain a virus, spyware, or phishing mechanism. Web pages that deploy code designed specifically to hijack your computer's settings or activity.

Some examples include self-installing applications called "drive-by" executable file downloads , Trojans, and viruses that exploit security vulnerabilities in browsers or other applications. It is possible for a Web page to lose its malicious status and be re-categorized. Web pages that provide individual or business promotion of products or services on the Web, but do not sell their products or services online.

Examples include, but are not limited to, wedding photography services, automobile manufacturer sites, or graphic design services. Sites with sole intent to market their services to other businesses; see "Business". The files are saved to and played from the user's computer.

Audio or video files that are played directly through a browser window are not included in this category; see "Streaming Media". Web pages that allow users to upload, search for, and share media files and photos, such as online photo albums. Web pages that provide buyable media, software, or utilities for mobile phones that can be downloaded and delivered to mobile phones.

Bulletin boards, chat rooms, search engines, or Web mail sites that are monitored by an individual or group who has the authority to block messages or content considered inappropriate.

This category may be used as an exception to allow access to Web pages categorized as Moderated. Web pages for car reviews, vehicle purchasing or sales tips, and parts catalogs; auto trading, photos, and discussion of vehicles including motorcycles, boats, cars, trucks, and RVs; journals and magazines on vehicle modification, repair, and customization; and online automotive enthusiast club sites. This category includes sites for manufacturers and dealerships of consumer transportation vehicles, such as cars, vans, trucks, SUVs, motorcycles, and scooters.

This also includes sites that provide product marketing, reviews, comparisons, pricing information, auto fairs, auto expos, and general consumer information about motor vehicles. Automotive accessories, mechanics, auto-body shops, and recreational hobby pages are not included. Sites that provide business-to-business-only content regarding motor vehicles are not included.

A URL that most likely belongs to a legitimate web server, but all content still requires some attention. Web pages for groups designed for charitable or educational purposes that fulfill a stated mission, benefiting the larger community, such as clubs, lobbies, communities, non-profit organizations, labor unions, and advocacy groups.

Organizations with governmental endorsements, but not government run, will fall under this category. Web pages that have non-pornographic images of the bare human body. Classic sculpture and paintings, artistic nude photographs, some naturism pictures, and detailed medical illustrations are included in the Nudity category.

High-profile sites where nudity is not a concern for visitors do not fall under this category; see "Incidental Nudity". Web pages that specifically sell products or services online.

Web pages that sell only one product are not included in Online Shopping. Those Web pages will be categorized according to the topic of their exclusive content. For example, a site selling only weapons would be categorized under Weapons. A site selling weapons with a broad range of other items will be categorized as Online Shopping.

Web pages that allow the exchange of files between computers and users for business or personal use, such as downloadable music. P2P clients allow users to search for and exchange files from a peer-user network. They often include spyware or real-time chat capabilities. BitTorrent Web pages are included under this category.

Web pages that once served content, but their domains have been sold or abandoned and are no longer registered. Parked domains do not host their own content, but usually redirect users to a generic page that states the domain name is for sale or redirect users to a generic search engine and portal page, some of which provide valid search engine results.

Web pages that allow users to upload folders and files to an online network server in order to backup, share, edit, or retrieve files or folders from any Web browser.

Also included are unique domains that contain personal information, such as a personal home page. Home pages of public figures are not rated as Personal Pages, they will fall under their related category such as Entertainment or Sports. However, these pages are not highly trafficked making them difficult to categorize and provide coverage for each personal page.

Web pages that provide reviews, descriptions, and market or sell prescription based drugs, over-the-counter drugs, birth control, or dietary supplements. Links to Web pages that typically arrive in hoax e-mails established to steal user account information. These sites falsely represent themselves and appear as legitimate company Web pages in order to deceive and obtain user account information that can be used to perpetrate fraud or theft.

Web pages covering political parties, individuals in political life, and opinion on various topics. Web pages that contain materials intended to be sexually arousing or erotic. This includes fetish pages, animation, cartoons, stories, and illegal pornography. Web pages designed as a starting point that serve as major gateways or directories to content on the Web.

Many portal sites also provide a variety of internal site features or services such as search engines, e-mail, news, and entertainment. Mailing list sites with a variety of content are included in the Portal Sites category.

Sites with topic-specific content are not included in this category. Such sites are categorized more specifically, such as Entertainment.

Computer users who are concerned about security or privacy might want to be informed about this software, and in some cases, they might want to remove this software from their computers. This category includes Web pages that provide social networking exclusively for professional or business related purposes. This category will also contain alumni sites that have a networking function. This category does not include social networking sites where the focus may vary, but include friendship, dating, or professional focuses.