Block HTTPS Website

TL;DR

You can block a website’s HTTPS version using your firewall or hosts file. This guide shows you how to do both.

Blocking HTTPS with Your Firewall

1. Identify the Website’s IP Address: First, find out the IP address of the website you want to block. You can use a command-line tool like ping or an online lookup service.

   ping example.com

2. Access Your Firewall Settings: The way you do this depends on your firewall software (e.g., Windows Defender Firewall, pfSense, iptables). Look for settings related to ‘Outbound Rules’ or ‘Block Lists’.
3. Create a New Block Rule: Add a new rule that blocks traffic to the website’s IP address on port 443 (the standard HTTPS port).
   • Rule Name: Give your rule a descriptive name, like “Block Example.com HTTPS”.
   • Direction: Set the direction to ‘Outbound’ (to prevent your computer from connecting).
   • Protocol: Select ‘TCP’.
   • Local Port: Usually set to ‘Any’.
   • Remote Port: Set this to 443.
   • Remote IP Address: Enter the IP address you found in step 1.
   • Action: Set the action to ‘Block’ or ‘Deny’.
4. Enable the Rule: Make sure the rule is enabled and saved.
5. Test the Block: Try accessing the website using https://example.com in your web browser. It should be blocked.

Blocking HTTPS with Your Hosts File

This method redirects requests for the website to a non-routable IP address (127.0.0.1, which is your own computer).

1. Locate Your Hosts File: The location depends on your operating system:
   • Windows: C:WindowsSystem32driversetchosts
   • macOS/Linux: /etc/hosts
2. Open the Hosts File as an Administrator: You’ll need administrator privileges to edit this file. On Windows, right-click Notepad and select ‘Run as administrator’. On macOS/Linux, use a command like sudo nano /etc/hosts.
3. Add a New Entry: Add a line at the end of the file in the following format:

   127.0.0.1 example.com

   If you want to block both example.com and www.example.com, add two lines:

   127.0.0.1 example.com
   127.0.0.1 www.example.com

4. Save the Hosts File: Save the changes to the file.
5. Flush Your DNS Cache (Optional): This forces your computer to read the updated hosts file immediately.
   • Windows: Open Command Prompt as administrator and run ipconfig /flushdns
   • macOS: Open Terminal and run sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder
   • Linux: The command varies depending on your distribution (e.g., sudo systemd-resolve --flush-caches)
6. Test the Block: Try accessing the website using both http://example.com and https://example.com in your web browser. It should redirect to your own computer or show an error.

Important Note: Blocking a website with your hosts file only affects your computer. The firewall method can block access for all devices on your network (depending on how it’s configured).