Geo-Blocking

Geo-blocking is the restriction of content or service access according to a visitor’s inferred geographic location. A site may hide a page, change available features, or reject a request when the source appears to come from a restricted area.

The most common signal is IP geolocation. A service looks up the request’s public source address in a database that maps network ranges to countries or smaller regions. It may combine that result with account country, payment information, device location, or other signals. Since IP mapping is imperfect, travelers, mobile users, corporate networks, and recently reassigned address ranges can be classified incorrectly.

Geo-blocking differs from geo-targeting. Geo-blocking is a destination’s access decision. Geo-targeting is a proxy client’s request for an exit in a chosen area. A location-targeted exit can help test how public pages vary by country, but it does not override account controls or other location checks. Access should respect the service’s terms and applicable law.

The guide to accessing geo-restricted websites with residential proxies explains how IP location affects public content.

Related terms: geo-targeting and IP ban.