The below information relates to what I personally use and recommend people consider using.
Please assess what is best for you.
For Pi-Hole, DNSCrypt Proxy, SecureDNS or Technitium DNS Server configuration please refer to their official documentation and then add blocklists and then the whitelist. see lists.
Check that you are using AdGuard Home v0.106.3 or later (vital functionality was hotfixed).
I personally use and recommend people consider using Quad9 (https://www.quad9.net/) as their DNS.
Quad9 tops the speed and reliaility tests for my location; they offer Malware Blocking, support DNS-over-TLS and also DNSSEC.
They are also now "incorporated in Switzerland to guarantee privacy for global DNS users" (quad9).
- (optional) To test it at your location run the tool: GRC Domain Name Speed Benchmark for Windows/Linux
tls://dns.quad9.net
9.9.9.9
Check/tick the "Enable DNSSEC" checkbox and click the green Save button.
Once you have AdGuard Home ready and are logged in, use its main menu to add multiple blocklists and one allowlist (below).
| Type | Link (URL) |
|---|---|
| 📗 Allowlist | filter_whitelist.txt |
| 🛑 Blocklist (1 of 4) | filter_blocklist1.txt |
| 🛑 Blocklist (2 of 4) | filter_blocklist2.txt |
| 🛑 Blocklist (3 of 4) | filter_blocklist3.txt |
| 🛑 Blocklist (4 of 4) | filter_blocklist4.txt |
These are additional whitelist modules that are only recommended if you use the specific products on your network.
You can modify how often filter lists are updated within Adguard Home in the Settings > General Settings page.
Set "Filters update interval" to 12 hours (recommended) and click the green "Save" button. This list updates around twice per day.
A mix of Internet Browser Addons/Extensions can improve your security and privacy further.
These are best security and privacy focused internet browser extensions/addons in my opinion.
Install using this collection.
Visit the offical Google Chrome Webstore:
Manually add:
- AdGuard AdBlocker
- ClearURLs
- Decentraleyes
- DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials
- Emsisoft Browser Security
- HTTPS Everywhere
- I don't care about cookies
- LocalCDN
- Malwarebytes Browser Guard
- Never-Consent
- Privacy Badger
- Privacy Pass
- SponsorBlock - Skip Sponsorships on YouTube
I personally also use SimpleWall to have a baseline protection on an application level.
If you use Windows 10, please use O&O ShutUp10 to disable spying features initially and then after each major update.