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Administrators use wildcard rules in the Website URLs section of a policy to block or allow any URL that matches a pattern, not just an exact address.

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Review Wildcard Behavior

An asterisk (*) matches any sequence of characters in a URL, including subpaths, query strings, and subdomains. Place it anywhere in a pattern to capture variable content. Implicit wildcard at the end of every rule. All URL entries have an implied * appended automatically. Blocking website.com behaves the same as blocking website.com*, which blocks website.com, website.com/page, and any other URL that begins with that string.
Block rules and allow rules use identical wildcard syntax. The examples below use block rules, but the same patterns work for allow rules: they allow the matched content instead of blocking it.
Review Wildcard Behavior

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Look Up Wildcard Patterns

If a wildcard rule unintentionally blocks a legitimate site, add that site as an allow rule in the same policy. Allow rules take precedence over block rules, so the specific allow entry overrides the broader wildcard block.
Short keyword patterns can produce unexpected results. Blocking *games* also blocks coolmathgames.com and any educational site with “games” in its URL. Terms like proxy or vpn may also appear in legitimate URLs such as Google Docs or Google Drive share links. Use the most specific pattern that covers the intended target.

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Keep Search Filtering Active

The *search*term pattern targets only search result pages, which makes it useful for filtering specific queries without blocking the broader site. Do not add Google.com, Google.com/search, or YouTube.com to the allow list. Adding those addresses directly to the allow list bypasses search filtering.

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Apply Common Block Patterns

GoGuardian recommends adding the following wildcard patterns to your default block policy. These patterns target common circumvention tools and high-traffic restricted sites.

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Resources

Create a Filtering Policy

Add wildcard rules to a new or existing policy.

A Site Is Blocked Unexpectedly

Troubleshoot blocks caused by wildcard rules or category filtering.
Last modified on July 10, 2026