I have been using Sun Belt Software Clear Cloud DNS for a few days as my Internet’s DNS server. A DNS server is like a phone book when you type in Google.com the DNS address translate the domain name into an IP address which consist of numbers and periods like 192.168.1.1 for your web browser to use to go to a specific website.
Clear Cloud DNS claims to block websites which host viruses and other dangerous programs by blocking the domain name of websites which host viruses, and improve the speed of your DNS look ups.
Clear Cloud DNS also blocks malware from sending your information to a 3rd-party if the DNS address is blocked.
Clear Cloud DNS’s Bad Website list is so good that it is used by government agencies and corporations to protect their computers.
Clear Cloud DNS is also pretty fast, so if your ISP’s DNS server is slow you can switch to Clear Cloud DNS for improve speed and added security.
The best part of using Clear Cloud DNS is it is free, and does not use any computer resources like CPU and RAM while blocking you from visiting bad websites which host viruses and malware.
Clear Cloud DNS works for all operating systems, and computers. I can even set up my router to use the Clear Cloud DNS address, so my Wi-Fi devices like laptops, portable game consoles, game consoles like PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii are all using Clear Cloud DNS as well.
I notice I encountered 2 false positive since using it, but it is very easy to report false-positive websites to Clear Cloud DNS to have them investigate your claim and it takes less then a day for SunBelt to unblock the website which was being falsely block. However, most sites I go to on a regular basis like Google, Yahoo, Youtube, Twitter, etc were not blocked.
I notice that I’m less likely to visit domain names which are misspelled like Yuotube since it is block by Clear Cloud DNS. Many misspelled and phishing websites contain malicious programs or trick people into clicking on dangerous links.
The DNS addresses for Clear Cloud DNS are:
Preferred DNS server: 74.118.212.1
Alternate DNS server: 74.118.212.2
If you want to learn how to change your DNS address for Windows 7, watch this video.
Visit clearclouddns.com/setup/windows or clearclouddns.com/setup/mac to download a program to change your DNS settings or change your DNS settings manually if you are using a different version of Windows like XP, or Vista.
Visit test.ssdsandbox.net and clearcloudtest.ssdsandbox.net to test if Clear Cloud is set up properly on your computer or router.
Using Sunbelt’s Clear Cloud DNS with a good antivirus and firewall is a great way to protect your computer from viruses. Using Sunbelt Clear Cloud DNS is also good for finding out if any of your sites or your friends sites are being blocked by Clear Cloud DNS, so you can report a false positive claim.
Sun Belt is also the maker of the award winning Vipre AntiVirus + AntiSpyware which got over 200 positive reviews on Amazon.com.
I give this a try. Many thanks.
Thanks, Clear Cloud DNS is worth trying since we can never be too careful trying to avoid bad websites and domain names with viruses on the internet.
thanks for sharing
Websites on the internet with malicious code injected on them continue to increase, it is a popular way for cyber criminals to spread harmful viruses.
I agree, websites with Malicous code can be a common way for cyber criminals to steal personal information.
I read if you use Google Chrome, Firefox, Opera, etc, you won’y get those activeX viruses for Internet Explorer. It is also important to keep Internet Explorer, Windows, Firewall, antivirus, antispyware, and antimalware up to date.
You’re welcome. Thanks for reading my post!
These DNS services are good for basic content filtering and as stated in the article can be a bit flaky by blocking legit sites. I would also like to add that you still should not reply on these DNS servers as your total protection from Spyware and Viruses and as a native alternative to web content filtering.
Michael.
I agree using a web filtering software can protect you from a lot of spammy, and dangerous sites. I’m not too sure since I don’t work in a help desk or tech support office, but I read most corporate offices uses proxy servers to protect client computers from dangerous sites which may contain malware.
Having a good antivrus, firewall, anti-malware, sandbox program and behavioral programs also can keep a computer well protected.
I would also like to add that you still should not reply on these DNS servers as your total protection from Spyware and Viruses and as a native alternative to web content filtering.
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Indeed you should not totally rely on these DNS servers for complete protection. But, they’re good as an extra layer of protection.
I’m using google public dns but i’m going to try this. it’s always good to have an extra layer of protection. thanks for an informative post. web development
The problem with using such DNS services, including Google’s, is that a lot of CDN services work based on your DNS IP Address. This means that for some sites that use a CDN that uses GeoDNS Features, you will get the content from the wrong country, and your download speeds will be degraded.
So I suggest you only use such DNS services if you really MUST. Otherwise, always use your ISP’s DNS Servers.