About this app

BrickGuard is an accountability based web filter to protect your internet usage and fight online addiction 💪

😩 Annoyed by ads and want a no-fuss way to get rid of them completely?

🛡️ Want to protect yourself from phishing, tracking, malware, and other malicious domains?

🙈 Battling an online addiction (adult content, social media) and want to hold yourself accountable to your internet history?

🆘 BrickGuard will help you in 2 ways: 🆘

1. BrickGuard runs an internal DNS resolver that allows you to block ads, adult content and other malicious sites (phishing, tracking, malware) so you can enjoy safer, less crappy internet right off the bat. 🏏

2. Fighting an addiction to adult content or other online vices? We believe that the best way to quit is by blocking bad sites altogether and giving a trusted friend accountability over your online presence. You can opt-in for BrickGuard to send weekly reports about your streak, the bad sites you've tried to visit, as well as any attempts to change the service configuration. 💂

🌟 Features! 🌟

✓ Security PIN - So that nobody else messes around with your service configuration! 🔒

✓ Toggle filter level - Toggle your desired internet filter level. Behind the scenes, BrickGuard automatically routes your internet traffic to cleanbrowsing.org or OpenDNS to do a pre-filtering on malicious websites ⚡

✓ Block and track ads & other malicious sites - BrickGuard uses an internal dnsmasq resolver that captures and tracks the ads & malicious sites your device attempts to visit 👀

✓ Blacklist additional custom domains - You get to choose which additional domains you don't want to see 🙈

✓ Streak - BrickGuard counts the number of days you've been on it. If you deliberately deactivated the service, it resets to 0. 🏃

✓ Accountability partner emails - If you specify an accountability partner email, BrickGuard sends weekly reports about your streak, the malicious sites you've tried to visit, as well as any attempts to change the service configuration 💂


How accountability works

BrickGuard allows you to opt-in to emailing weekly usage reports to a trusted accountability partner 🤝. What this email contains:

1. All attempts in the past week to visit blocked adult domains or other custom domains.

2. All attempts to deactivate the service or change the service configuration.

3. Your current streak - i.e. how long you have the service activated and running.


Frequently asked questions

Q. What's with the VPN?

A. A VPN tunnel is required for the app to run an internal DNS resolver in your device. The VPN is set up locally and does not connect your phone through a location proxy.

Q. Is my internet traffic monitored?

A. No. The app only logs the ads and malicious sites the device tries to connect to, and this information is stored in a local database in your device. We do not have access to any of that information, even when you opt in to accountability emails.

Q. Does this app slow down my internet?

A. No. The VPN service is run locally in your device and the service does not route your internet through any proxies. This means that your internet connection speeds are unaffected by this app.


Behind the scenes

This app creates a VPN tunnel to handle all DNS requests. An internal dnsmasq resolver parses dnsmasq configuration files to block attempts to malicious domains. Whenever a blocked domain is visited, the dnsmasq resolver nullifies the domain to 0.0.0.0, and the app logs an entry into a local database on your device. The app also sets the device's upstream DNS servers to cleanbrowsing.org or OpenDNS Family Shield for further protection.

If opted in to accountability emails, a worker thread sends a usage report every week to the specified email address.

New features

Update UI

App Permissions

Allows applications to open network sockets.
Allows an application to receive the ACTION_BOOT_COMPLETED that is broadcast after the system finishes booting.
Allows applications to access information about networks.
Allows an application to expand or collapse the status bar.
Allows using PowerManager WakeLocks to keep processor from sleeping or screen from dimming.