Acceptable use policy categories

You can allow or block traffic to Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) categories. AUP categories are used to classify requested websites. Depending on the action that’s associated with a category, the policy defines whether traffic to websites in these categories is permitted or blocked in your network.
Note: Akamai has added and refined AUP categories. If you blocked a category that’s now discontinued, you can confirm that you want to assign the block action to a new category. For more information, see Migrate block settings from discontinued AUP categories.

If ETP Proxy is enabled as a full web proxy, requests to allowed (not blocked) websites are still directed to ETP Proxy for analysis. ETP Proxy scans web traffic and blocks non-web traffic that is sent over port 443, such as Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) or XMPP over TLS.

If there is a website that you don’t want directed to ETP Proxy, make sure you configure these domains in an exception list. An exception list is automatically assigned the bypass action in a policy. For more information, see Exception lists.

Note: To learn which categories are new and which categories are discontinued, see New, updated, and discontinued AUP categories.

For application visibility and control (AVC), you can configure AUP as part of the AVC policy. In this configuration, you can add AUP categories to a policy where you can select policy actions for content and web applications that are classified by these categories. For more information on AVC, see Application visibility and control.

Category Description
Abortion Websites that are in favor of or against abortion. This includes websites that describe the procedure, provide information on where to obtain one, and give testimonials on the topic.
Adult Websites that contain sexually explicit material that’s not pornographic in nature. This category contains these subcategories:
  • Lingerie. Websites that promote, review, or sell lingerie or intimate apparel.
  • Nudism and Naturism. Websites that depict the naked body but are not pornographic or sexual in intent. For example, websites in this category may show the naked body in art form. This category also contains websites that feature or promote nudism or a nudist lifestyle.
  • Sex Education. Websites that contain information about reproduction, sexual development, sexual orientation, contraceptives, sexually transmitted diseases, and other topics related to sex.
Alcohol & Tobacco Websites that promote, sell, or provide information related to the consumption of alcohol or the use of tobacco and tobacco-related products.
Business & Economy Websites focused on business firms, marketing, management, economics, and entrepreneurship. This includes corporate websites and websites dedicated to other consumer services.

This category contains these subcategories:

  • Real Estate. Websites related to the rent and purchase of real estate or other property. This category also includes websites on mortgages, real estate agents, tips on selling a home, property improvement, and more.
  • Business & Economy. Websites focused on business firms, marketing, management, economics, and entrepreneurship. This includes corporate websites and websites dedicated to other consumer services.
DNS-over-HTTPS Providers Websites of DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) providers. DoH encrypts DNS requests and prevents a threat actor from manipulating DNS data. While DoH protects DNS traffic, you should block this category to prevent end users from bypassing ETP security.
Drugs Websites that sell, supply, promote, or advocate for the abuse or illegal use of drugs. These websites also provide information on the cultivation, manufacture, or distribution of drugs, pharmaceuticals, intoxicating plants, chemicals, and any drug-related equipment.
File Sharing Websites with clients, protocols, and other resources that allow users to download and share files with others. These websites may also enable users to stream unauthorized content such as movies, TV shows, and more. If you Block this traffic, the File Sharing option for ETP Proxy is also disabled.
Finance & Investing Websites that allow users to access, research, and manage their finances and investments. These websites are used for online banking, credit cards, personal and financial portfolios, and more.
Gambling Websites that promote gambling and allow users to gamble or place bets. Websites in this category may teach gambling, predict race winners, show lottery numbers, allow users to register for gambling tournaments, and more.
Games Websites related to the development, promotion, review, download, and overall play of online, PC, handheld, and console video games.
Healthcare Websites related to human health, including disease or illness, treatment, nutrition, and fitness. These websites are also dedicated to healthcare facilities, health insurance, pharmaceuticals, and more.
Illegal Websites that promote, instruct, or provide resources for illegal or unauthorized activity.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Criminal Skills. Websites that provide resources, information, or equipment to commit crimes and avoid prosecution.
  • Hacking. Websites with resources that allow hackers to gain unauthorized access and compromise a system or network with computer programming.
  • Plagiarism. Websites that offer, sell, or promote free academic writing services.
Individual Stock Advice & Tools Websites that promote or facilitate stock trading and the management of investment assets. This includes websites that contain information on financial investment news, strategies, and quotes.
Kids Websites that are designed to provide a safe Internet experience for young children and adolescents.
Large Bandwidth Websites that result in significant bandwidth usage.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Anonymizers. Websites that provide anonymous access to other websites through a proxy. These proxies avoid URL filtering and monitoring. You should block this category to prevent end users from bypassing enterprise security.
  • Peer to Peer. Websites that enable users to illegally share and transmit digital content.
  • Streaming Websites. Websites that feature and transmit live or on-demand audio or video content over the Internet. This includes websites that sell, deliver, and stream content to users.
Law & Enforcement Websites dedicated to the practice, administration, enforcement, and discussion of law. This includes law firm websites and websites that discuss or analyze legal issues.

This category contains these subcategories:

  • Government. Websites that contain information on the government, government agencies, and services. This includes local, county, state, and national government websites.
  • Legal. Websites focused on the practice of law, legal issues, and research, as well as law enforcement. This category also includes the official websites of law firms.
  • Military. Websites dedicated to the military, armed forces, military history, and military personnel. This category also includes websites dedicated to services for veterans, soldiers, and their families.
Leisure Websites related to hobbies, entertainment, music, the arts, travel, and recreational activities.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Entertainment & Arts. Websites related to the arts, including film, television, music, books, theater, and more. This includes websites for museums, art galleries, and artists.
  • Fashion & Beauty. Websites focused on glamor, beauty, cosmetics, fashion, and clothes. This includes websites for publications on these subjects.
  • Hunting & Fishing. Websites focused on hunting or fishing as a sport or recreational activity.
  • Image & Video Search. Websites that are related to photography and host digital photos.
  • Local Information. Websites that feature or promote restaurants, local areas of interest, tourist attractions, city guides, and more.
  • Music. Websites that stream, sell, and allow users to download music. This category also includes websites that provide information on musical artists, song lyrics, performances, and more.
  • Recreation & Hobbies. Websites focused on hobbies and recreational activities for enthusiasts and amateurs. This includes websites that provide information on associations, forums, and publications for these interests, such as outdoor activities, crafts, and collecting.
  • Travel. Websites related to travel, including booking a trip, travel agencies, reserving hotels, and more.
Marijuana Websites that advertise or officially sell CBD. This category excludes websites that promote CBD or marijuana for recreational use.
Motor Vehicles Websites that sell, manufacture, review, promote, or discuss motorized vehicles and their related products.
News & Media Websites that communicate the news. This category includes websites for newspapers, public broadcasting stations, radio stations, and more.
Personals & Dating Websites focused on establishing romantic relationships or marriage. These websites may offer online dating services, professional matchmaking and matrimonial services, tips for dating, and more.
Political Advocacy Websites focused on politics or philosophy where a particular viewpoint is expressed.
Pornography Websites Websites that contain sexually explicit material meant to incite sexual excitement or interest.
Religion Websites dedicated to religious subjects, practices, services, and houses of worship.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Cult and Occult. Websites for religious movements, groups, or sects that are exploitative or unorthodox. This category also contains websites focused on the practice of magic to interpret and influence events.
  • Religion. Websites dedicated to religious subjects, practices, services, and houses of worship.
Research & Education Websites that allow users to find information and gain knowledge or skills.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Educational Institutes. Websites for schools and institutions at all educational levels. This category includes websites with content that's designed for students, administrators, and teachers such as enrollment or course information.
  • Job Search. Websites that assist with job searches, provide job information, and offer resources for locating employment. Websites in this category also help employers find candidates.
  • Reference & Research. Websites for personal, professional, and educational research. Websites in this category include online dictionaries, library catalogs, scientific information, and more.
  • Search Engines. Websites that search the Internet for information, images, video content, and more based on provided keywords and phrases.
  • Training & Tools. Websites focused on developing or attaining a formal education or vocational skills. Websites in this category offer online courses, software training, and more.
  • Translation. Websites used for translation that allow users to see content or URL pages in other languages.
Self-Harm Websites that promote, normalize, or glamorize the repetitive and deliberate ways to inflict harm to oneself. This category also contains websites that advocate or glorify suicide and promote methods for committing suicide.
Shopping Websites that allow consumers to purchase goods and services from retailers or sellers.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Auctions. Websites that offer online auctions.
  • Home & Garden. Websites that sell products for the home, including decor, tools for maintenance and gardening, electronics, and more.
  • Online Greeting Cards. Websites for online greeting cards.
  • Shopping. Websites that allow consumers to purchase goods and services from retailers or sellers.
  • Web Advertisements. Websites that host advertisements to attract consumers and increase web traffic.
Social Websites that facilitate online discussion and promote the development of personal or professional relationships.

This category contains these subcategories:

  • Blogging. Websites that are blogs or host and publish blogs. These websites contain regularly posted entries that share views, commentary, or personal content. Blogs often include photos and multimedia.
  • Chat Site. Websites that enable users to chat in real time through chat rooms, online conferences, video chat, or instant messaging.
  • Forums & Message Boards. Websites that host online communities and allow end users to engage in discussions on a variety of topics. These websites include moderated or unmoderated web forums, message boards, online question and answer sites, and more.
  • Virtual Community. Websites that promote social networking and have online communities where users interact and communicate with one another.
Sports Websites that analyze, promote, or provide information about competitive sports or sports fans.
Technology Websites related to computers, hardware, software, Internet services, and more.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Computer & Internet Info. Websites related to computers that provide technical information. Websites in this category focus on hardware, software, SaaS, Internet services, or more.
  • Computer & Internet Security. Websites that discuss or provide information on computers and Internet security.
  • Confirmed Spam Sources. Websites that are known spam sources.
  • Content Delivery Networks. Websites that deliver content and data such as images, videos, and media files as a result of a content delivery network.
  • Dead Sites. Websites that cannot be categorized into an AUP category. These websites do not respond to HTTP queries.
  • Dynamic Content. Websites that dynamically generate content based on URL or other information from the web request.
  • Internet Portals. Websites that are a gateway to other content and services on the Internet.
  • Keyloggers & Monitoring. Websites that log keystrokes and are known to monitor a user's Internet activity.
  • Parked Domains. Websites that host limited content and may contain advertisements to generate revenue. These websites are usually owned by domain name registrars, domain brokers, or Internet advertising publishers.
  • Pay to Surf. Websites that pay users to find and review content on the Internet.
  • Shareware & Freeware. Websites that offer free software, utilities, media, and other content for legal download.
  • Spam URLs. Websites or URLs from spam messages.
  • Spyware & Adware. Websites associated with vendors of spyware or adware. These websites may gather information about the user, display unsolicited advertising, and download unwanted software to the user's machine.
  • Web-Based Email. Websites that offer web-based email services through a browser.
  • Web Hosting. Websites that host websites for businesses and individuals.
Violence & Hate Websites that promote or provide instructions on how to cause deliberate and destructive violence, harm, mischief, and damage. Websites in this category also feature discriminatory or intolerant content that’s meant to denigrate or disparage an individual or group.
This category contains these subcategories:
  • Gore. Websites that promote or feature excessive, graphic, or deliberate violence against humans or animals. Websites may include real or animated scenes of violence, extremely violent video games, horror media and entertainment, and more.
  • Hate. Websites that promote or feature discriminatory, hostile, intolerant, and aggressive content with the intent to denigrate or disparage an individual or group based on race, religion, gender, nationality, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and other involuntary characteristics. These sites may use alleged scientific or accredited methods to justify this content.
  • Violence. Websites that promote or provide instructions on how to cause deliberate and destructive violence, harm, mischief, and damage. These websites may include information on manufacturing explosives or bombs, executing harmful pranks, and more.
Weapons Related Websites that promote and provide information on various types of weapons, such as knives and guns. This category includes websites that sell knives, guns, and firearm accessories. It also includes websites that provide instructions on making weapons for hand-to-hand combat or martial arts.