1.1.1.1 for Families and WARP for desktop: The new features of Cloudflare for safe surfing

Two years ago, Cloudflare’s announcement of the new DNS 1.1.1.1 made quite a stir. A stir because the communication was given on the first of April, and for more than a moment, one thought of one of the most classic ” fish. ” But with that move, Cloudflare threw an important gauntlet to various Internet service providers and Google by launching its public DNS service with a particular emphasis on speed and respect for privacy.

For this year’s non-fish, Cloudflare has decided to expand the quality and type of DNS service by embracing the security issue with two new DNS that aim to block dangerous traffic (malware) and unwanted content and/or not suitable for a very young audience.

1.1.1.2 and 1.1.1.3: The new DNS to stay safe

Small brackets to explain, to the less accustomed, what a DNS stands for Domain Name Service. It is a server that we can consider as a large ” map ” or ” address book ” of internet addresses that each of us enters in the browser bar using alphanumeric characters and takes care of correctly routing a URL address such as, for example, www.wiselyguide.com to a specific IP address that represents the server on which the website is located.

An easily understandable consequence is that anyone who operates a DNS service has the possibility to observe more carefully the traffic that moves between certain addresses. And this is one of the main criticisms of connectivity services and also of Google with its DNS servers, and it is the reason why Cloudflare decided two years ago to launch its service which, thanks to HTTPS or TLS encryption, ensures confidentiality on the internet traffic.

Now Cloudflare, as mentioned above, launches the new 1.1.1.1 for Families initiative, activating two new DNS servers: 1.1.1.2, which blocks only potential threats such as malware and 1.1.1.3, which blocks both malware and adult content.

The WARP VPN also arrives in beta on Desktop

The news of Cloudflare does not stop there: the company has announced that the WARP VPN launched last September and dedicated to iOS and Android smartphones (with the app called 1.1.1.1 just like its DNS) is now made available in the form of public beta also for the desktop world with the possibility of being used on Windows and macOS operating systems, a request that was persistently presented by the public after the debut of WARP on mobile last year.

The introduction of the 1.1.1.1 app was intended to allow anyone who wants to connect to the Internet via smartphone or tablet with an extra degree of security, thanks to the creation of an encrypted tunnel.

The desktop version of WARP is based on the same protocol used for the app, Wireguard, and the basic version of the service is free exactly as it is for the mobile app. In the coming months, Cloudflare has announced that it will also introduce WARP on a paid desktop, with an eye to performance thanks to the Argo network.