After successful trials of a "default on" approach with its Sky Broadband Shield service for some customers last year, the company has made the bold step of switching on porn and adult content filters for every customer by default.

New customers who register their broadband for the first time are no longer given the choice of whether to switch the parental controls and child safety filters on or off, but will have them automatically blocking sites deemed inappropriate for children.

Existing customers will continue to be contacted to ask if they want them switched on. If they don't reply, it will be assumed they do.

However, you can switch them back off again if you are not worried about minors accessing adult or inappropriate websites. So we explain what Sky Broadband Shield actually does, and how you can switch it off.

What is Sky Broadband Shield?

Sky's porn and adult content filters were implemented at the beginning of 2015 in response to the UK government asking internet service providers to help protect children from viewing pornography and other unsuitable content on the internet.

They block content based on age range chosen, with varying levels of filtering for PG, 13 and 18 age groups. The latter protects from sites believed to contain malware or suspected of phising. The former two have a large range of subjects deemed inappropriate, with the former also blocking online games and social networks.

The new "default on" plans mean that every customer's Sky Broadband connection will be set to restrict content at the "13" age range level until 9pm each day. After that time, 18-rated content will be able to view without restriction.

Websites that fall into the filtered category, for whatever reason, will be automatically blocked.

Sky Broadband Shield will also be automatically activated for customers taking Sky Broadband through a Now TV Combo package.

Do other ISPs have porn filters and adult content filtering?

All of the major internet service providers in the UK have their own parental controls and adult content blockers - including Virgin Media, BT and TalkTalk. However, only Sky has so far announced that these will be activated by default for every customer.

How do I switch off Sky Broadband Shield?

Once the default on scheme has been launched, new customers will no longer be asked if they want to activate Sky Broadband Shield and, as mentioned already, existing customers must respond to a request to prevent activation.

If you find that your broadband has the protection switched on and you do not require it, Sky makes it simple to turn off again; as soon as you visit a website that is blocked, the account holder will be invited to amend the controls or switch Sky Broadband Shield off altogether.

Account holders can also change the settings or switch it off completely now by accessing the My Sky web page. You can also switch Sky Broadband Shield on from there if it is currently off and you wish to activate it.

You can also find out more about Sky Broadband Shield and what it offers from Sky's dedicated web page.