Every parent knows the knot in your stomach when you hand a child a connected device. Safe Surfer is a New Zealand-built internet filtering platform designed to take that worry off your plate — blocking pornography, adult content, AI chatbots, and 60+ additional categories across every device in your household.^1
The platform works at the DNS level, meaning protection travels with the device whether it's on home Wi-Fi or mobile data. Parents can block harmful websites, manage screen time with scheduled internet bedtimes, view real-time browsing history, and receive regular email alerts summarizing family activity — all from a remote dashboard without ever touching the child's device.^2 A machine-learning-powered screen blackout feature can capture a screenshot and temporarily blacken the screen when explicit content appears, then notify an accountability partner.^2 Safe Surfer runs on Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, and browser extensions for Chrome, Edge, and Firefox, and the company also sells its own "Lifeguard" router for whole-network protection at home, school, or business.^3
Founded in 2016 by Rory Birkbeck and Aaron Sinclair in Tauranga, New Zealand, Safe Surfer was born from a conviction that existing online safety tools were too complex for everyday families.^4 Rory, a self-described "dedicated Christian," was moved to act after visiting a Philippine orphanage and seeing the realities of child exploitation.^5 In 2018 the team won Technology Innovator of the Year at the New Zealand Charities Technology Awards,^4 and in 2022 they became an official Friendly WiFi Approved Provider — a UK government-initiated certification verifying their filters block known child abuse and pornography websites.^6 In 2024, Safe Surfer announced an exclusive partnership with Samsung to offer pre-configured kid-safe smartphones and tablets across New Zealand and Australia with built-in Safe Surfer protection.^7 Their "Worst Children's Library" campaign with Samsung and DDB Aotearoa won two Bronze Lions at the 2025 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity,^8 and in April 2026 the team brought the campaign to New Zealand Parliament to advocate for stronger online-harms protections for young people.^9 Rory has appeared on Shine TV, Rhema Breakfast, The Platform, and RNZ discussing child safety online, and in 2025 submitted to New Zealand's parliamentary inquiry into online harms facing young people.^10
Why Christians Love It"We have been so impressed with this app — we have it running on all devices constantly and have never had any pop-ups or problems with inappropriate content. No adult content accessible which is brilliant!"^12
"Best internet filter available. A well done, thought-through solution that's easy to use. A must for any family."^1
"Ensuring your whole family's devices are protected by monitoring and filtering software is a crucial first step in making sure your child is safe online. Safe Surfer is our recommended service provider." — Christy Herselman, The Chat (South Africa)^1
Notable- Exclusive partnership with Samsung for kid-safe smartphones and tablets across New Zealand and Australia (2024)^7
- Two Bronze Lions at Cannes 2025 for "Worst Children's Library" campaign with Samsung and DDB Aotearoa^8
- "Worst Children's Library" brought to New Zealand Parliament (April 2026) as advocacy for stronger online-harms protections^9
- Official partner of Smartphone Free Childhood NZ, with a discounted bundled deal for router + app^13
- Co-authored the Digital Sexual Landscape Report 2025, commissioned by ACC (New Zealand's Accident Compensation Corporation)^4
- Friendly WiFi Approved Provider — UK government-backed certification for safe public Wi-Fi filtering^6
- Won Technology Innovator of the Year at NZ Charities Technology Awards (2018)^4
- Filtering active on 500K+ devices across 120+ countries^4
- Independent review of the Samsung Kid-Safe Phone praises Safe Surfer's built-in approach as "a game changer" for tamper-proof parental controls^15
- Launched "Kids Unplugged" documentary series (2025) celebrating kids choosing outdoor adventure over screen time^16
- Endorsed by Parenting Place and Generation Online (NZ child safety organizations)^1
- The Good Source ISP uses Safe Surfer tech to provide family-friendly fibre internet in NZ^17
