Guide
How to block adult content on a Mac so a browser cannot quietly route around it
A Mac gets the stronger of squeevio's two desktop architectures: the same full-tunnel network extension used on iPhone, not the DNS-proxy approach the Windows client uses. That matters because a browser with its own encrypted DNS resolver — Firefox or Brave, for instance — can walk straight past a DNS-only filter. It cannot walk past a network extension inspecting the traffic itself.
Short answer
Install the Mac client, approve the network extension once when macOS asks (System Settings will show it as a VPN/network filter), and all traffic — not just DNS lookups — is filtered on-device before it leaves the machine.
The part that makes it hold: attach a partner, and removing the filter stops being a decision you can make alone, the same rule as every other squeevio client.
Step by step
Install and approve the network extension
macOS asks you to approve the extension once, in System Settings → Network, or via the one-time permission prompt at first launch. This is the same NEPacketTunnelProvider mechanism as the iPhone app, which is why it inspects all traffic rather than only DNS lookups — a browser cannot quietly opt itself out the way it could against a DNS-only setting.
Choose categories over chasing individual sites
Same shared category list as every other squeevio client. 5 categories and 50 of your own domains on the free tier — enough for most people without ever touching a paid plan.
Add a partner before you need one
Adding protection is always free and instant, on this Mac or any device. Removing it, once a partner is attached, requires them — a remote, time-boxed unlock, or a one-time code they read to you that works with no connectivity. They see which categories and domains are blocked, never what you visited.
Write down your reason while you're calm
The same principle as the phone apps: a note written now is what the block screen shows you later, at the moment a generic warning would just get closed and ignored.
What this does not do
- A full-tunnel network extension is strong against in-app bypass tricks, but it does not survive a macOS Recovery Mode reinstall or a determined admin removing the extension outright — no software on a machine you fully control can prevent that. The design goal is removing the reflexive, thirty-second undo, not building something immovable.
- You must approve the network extension yourself when macOS prompts — that consent is deliberate. This is a tool for someone who wants the limit, not a way to impose one on someone else without their knowledge.
- It is not therapy. Software here is a support structure around a decision you already made, not a substitute for professional help if the pattern is escalating.
Questions
- Is this the same protection level as the iPhone app?
- Yes — both use the same full-tunnel network extension architecture (NEPacketTunnelProvider), which is the strongest of squeevio's client designs and is why it is used on Mac instead of the DNS-proxy approach the Windows client uses.
- Will a browser's built-in private DNS get around this?
- No — that is the specific gap a full-tunnel extension closes. Since all traffic is inspected on-device rather than only DNS queries, a browser routing its own lookups through an encrypted DNS provider does not bypass the filter the way it can against a DNS-only setup.
- Does this slow the Mac down?
- The filtering decision happens locally with cached answers for repeat lookups, so ordinary browsing is not meaningfully slower — the goal explicitly stated in how this is built is that allowed traffic should be as fast as or faster than without the extension installed, never slower.
- Can my partner see what I do on the Mac?
- No. They see which categories and domains are blocked and which of your devices are linked — never browsing history, messages, or any content. Nothing about what you visited is collected in the first place, so there is nothing to show them.
Set it up before you need it
Approve the extension once, add a partner once, and the decision is made for every moment after.