5 Reasons You Should Be Using OpenDNS

I love the internet. I really do. Few things make me happier than when I’m online and everything is going like it’s supposed to.

Unfortunately, things don’t always go the way they’re supposed to on the internet. It can be slower than expected, you can be tricked into some pretty crafty phishing schemes, or you (or your kids) can stumble upon some pretty nasty content. Despite all the internet’s perks and all the pleasure you, I, and billions of people across the globe can derive from it, situations like these can be terrible.

But there is good news. There are internet superheroes fighting for a better online world.

Though they might seem outnumbered by all the bad guys and technical difficulties we face online, these internet superheroes fight harder and harder to make this web faster, more secure, and more informative.

OpenDNS is one such superhero. Calling itself “The fastest-growing Internet security and DNS service,” and with over 20 million clients, OpenDNS uses some pretty amazing technical mojo to make web browsing a better experience.

So, “how does it do this?” I’m glad you asked. Put simply, by allowing users to access the internet through special DNS servers instead of the ones provided by users’ internet service providers (ISP), OpenDNS increases performance and adds features that your ISP can’t or won’t.

(Click here for more information on DNS.)

Let me break it down a little. Here are 5 reasons you should become one of OpenDNS’s 20+ million [Update] 30+ million clients.

1. The Internet is Faster with OpenDNS

DNS servers are computers. Like all computers, there is a limit to how much “work” a DNS server can do at any given time. If you are using your ISP’s DNS servers (which by default you probably are), your ability to quickly resolve web addresses is directly linked with (and limited by) the speed of that server. More people using that same server means a slower connection for you.

OpenDNS is superior to your ISP’s DNS server because that’s its job! OpenDNS specializes in having the best, fastest DNS servers — unlike your ISP who has a million and one other things to worry about.

2. OpenDNS is More Reliable Than Your ISP

When you are dependent upon your ISP’s DNS server, you are putting your internet connection at unnecessary risk. If that DNS server crashes you would be unable to navigate to any websites by URL and would only be able to surf by IP address (because I know you have those memorized, right?).

I used to work for an ISP, and while this was not a common occurrence, those DNS servers did go down more often than you would hope. Believe me, trying to be online without a working DNS server is no fun at all.

OpenDNS also uses a system it calls “SmartCache” to create a more reliable internet. SmartCache detects some website failures and will help you get to the page you want in spite of those failures. Do you think your ISP can do that?

3. OpenDNS Offers a Safer Internet

In addition to its amazing reliability and speed, OpenDNS also puts a premium on security. It also runs the authoritative anti-phishing site PhishTank.com. This thorough knowledge of nefarious phishing sites is like a tool in OpenDNS’s tool belt that it uses to fight for your security online, preventing these sites from loading.

The anti-phishing service is so powerful that OpenDNS can rightly claim:

Our phishing protection is so good that companies like Yahoo!, Microsoft and Facebook look to us to help protect their customers.

 4. You Can Track Internet Statistics with OpenDNS

When you sign up and get your network online with OpenDNS, you can start keeping track of your internet usage like never before. Simply log into the OpenDNS dashboard, and you can view months and months of data on the domains and IPs you requested, the types of requests, and much more. The easy-to-read graphs make it easy to understand and conceptualize how you have been using your internet connection.

5. OpenDNS Offers a Robust Set of Parental Controls

Aside from all the malicious websites in the world today, there are legitimate sites that offer content that is inappropriate for children. Perhaps you don’t want to subject yourself to such material either. While there are programs that can be installed on a computer to help contain access to such sites, they are limited in their functionality.

• These software suites can be frustrating to install.
• They are only effective on the computer you install them on.

For help getting started, be sure to check out their Knowledge Base.