💔 Why isn’t Blocking Working Correctly?

There’s a variety of reasons why Opal may be blocking in a way you do not expect. Let’s clarify those scenarios to confirm if what you’re experiencing is intentional behaviour, versus a bug!

1. Opal is Blocking Private Browsing
2. Opal is not allowing me to access Adult Content
3. Opal won’t let me block or allow more than 49 apps or websites simultaneously
4. Opal won’t let me block in a third-party browser
5. Opal won’t allow me to add an app or website to my “Add App or Website” screen
6. I can or can’t access Safari during an Allow Only Rule
7. When I block an app, the website version of the same app is blocked
8. Opal is lagging or crashing or slow

Scenario 1: Opal is blocking Private Browsing in Safari!

Private browsing features in Safari (and some third-party browsers) are disabled by default on iOS 18 when you use our Allow Only feature in a Schedule. This is intentional behaviour. If you would like to access Private Browsing, you must wait until the Schedule ends. Alternatively, to ensure that your Private Browsing features are not disabled by default during an Allow Only list in a Schedule, you may update your OS version here.

Scenario 2: Opal is not allowing me to access Adult Content and/or I’m only allowed to use Safe Search in my browser!

There are a variety of scenarios in which you may be intentionally unable to access Adult Content and/or you’re only allowed to use Safe Search in your browser. They include:

1. You’ve enabled the “Adult Websites” toggle within our Never Allowed feature
2. You’re currently using the Allow Only feature within a Schedule and are on iOS 18. To resolve this, update your OS.
3. You’ve intentional blocked Adult Content in your Schedule, Time Limit, or Open Limit

If you’ve confirmed that none of the scenarios above apply, it’s possible that something else is going wrong. To troubleshoot further, please follow these steps:

1. Exit Opal and navigate to your Settings > Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions > App Store, Media, Web & Games > Web Content. Ensure that your web content filter is set to "Unrestricted”
2. If you are on iOS 26 and/or you have access to Opal Pro via a Family Sharing subscription, it's possible that you're being blocked from seeing Adult Websites due to Family Sharing restrictions that were implemented on that OS version. To gain access to Adult Websites, you'll need your Family Sharing coordinator to grant you access
3. If the two steps above do not resolve the issue, we'd recommend checking out the Safe Search Google options, as it's possible they are locked via Google

If none of the steps above resolve the issue, please contact Support.

Scenario 3: Opal won’t allow me to block or allow more than 49 apps or websites simultaneously!

Unfortunately, it is an Apple restriction that Opal is unable to restrict more than 49 apps or websites simultaneously. That said, sometimes Apple will allow these restrictions to be bypassed if you select app categories after tapping “Add App or Website” within a Schedule, Time Limit, or Open Limit. Unfortunately, this is not applied uniformly, and the Opal Support team is unable to intervene when they refuse to make an exception. We apologise for the inconvenience!

Scenario 4: Opal won’t allow me to block via a third-party browser!

How you can block a website depends on what browser you are using. On that note, it’s not always possible to block websites via third-party browsers (including Chrome, Firefox, Ecosia, Arc, Brave, Dia, Comet, Zen, Edge, Vivaldi, Opera, etc), but you should be able to consistently block websites on the iOS native Safari web app. However, we’d recommend attempting the troubleshooting tips outlined in Scenario 5, as this may allow you to block on a third-party browser.

Scenario 5: Opal won’t allow me to add a custom app or website to my “Add App or Website” screen!

The “Add App or Website” screen is generated by Apple, and unfortunately, the Opal Support team is unable to add or remove the apps and websites that appear there on your behalf. That said, here’s how you might be able to add that app or website to your “Add App or Website” screen:

• Visit the website you'd like to add in Safari (it must be Safari so iOS will track it)
• Leave Safari running in the background for about 10 minutes with that site open
• Navigate back to Opal, and open the “App App or Website” screen
• Search for that website

Unfortunately, if that tip doesn’t work, we'd recommend setting up that block using your Allow Only option within a Schedule. That way, only the apps and sites you select will be available, and everything else will be blocked. Please note that Allow Only is an Opal Pro feature.

Scenario 6: I can or can’t access Safari during an Allow Only Rule!

If you notice that you can or can’t access Safari during an Allow Only rule, it’s due to a recent change we made within the app. On that note, during an Allow Only Rule, iOS blocks websites everywhere - including web content that is hosted inside of apps. Due to this, apps you’ve allowed may show part of their content as restricted. On that note, if you’d like websites to be blocked in Allow Only rules, take these steps:

• Tap on “Home”
• Tap on “Profile” (accessible from the top right corner)
• Tap on “Settings” (accessible from the top right corner)
• Scroll down and toggle on/off “Block Websites in Allow-Only Rules”

Scenario 7: When I block Instagram, it also blocks Instagram.com!

If you have blocked an app within your Rule and you discover that the corresponding website for that app is also blocked, please note this is intended behaviour. This has been implemented by our team so that you do not use a browser to bypass your Rules. This situation may apply (but is not limited to) the following websites:

• If you block the Facebook app, you may find facebook.com is blocked
• If you block the Instagram app, you may find that instagram.com is blocked
• If you block the NYTimes app, you may find that nytimes.com is blocked
• If you block the Reddit app, you may find that reddit.com is blocked
• If you block the YouTube app, you may find that youtube.com is blocked

To be able to access a corresponding website, you must take a break from, or end, the Rule that applies to it.

Scenario 8: Opal is lagging or crashing or is very slow!

We’ve observed some issues with Opal lagging or crashing or acting very slowly on devices, and we’re currently investigating the issue. To resolve it, please first update to the newest version of the app here. If updating the app does not resolve the issue and the app continues to be slow, unresponsive, lagging, or crashing, please navigate to your Settings > Chat with Support and ask to speak to a human. When you do so, please include information about the version of OS you are currently on, the exact device you are using, and if your phone is currently in low-power mode. Our Support team will get back to you ASAP!