StevenBlack Hosts

StevenBlack Unified Hosts is a widely used open-source project that merges several reputable hosts file sources into a single, consolidated file for system-level ad blocking, tracker prevention, and malware protection. With tens of thousands of GitHub stars, it is one of the most popular host-file-based filtering solutions available.

Source:StevenBlack Hosts

What is the StevenBlack Hosts File?

A hosts file is a plain text file present on every operating system that maps hostnames to IP addresses. By mapping unwanted domains to0.0.0.0(a non-routable address), the hosts file effectively blocks all connections to those domains at the operating system level, before any network request leaves the machine. This works across all applications, not just web browsers.

The StevenBlack project aggregates and deduplicates entries from multiple well-established sources:

• AdAway default blocklist, widely used on Android devices
• MVPS HOSTS by Mike Burgess, one of the longest-running hosts file projects
• Dan Pollock's hosts file at someonewhocares.org, manually curated since the early 2000s
• Malware Domain List, focusing on domains involved in malware distribution
• Additional community-contributed sources covering gambling, social media, adult content, and other categories

The project offers several variants: a base list focused on adware and malware, and extended versions that add blocking for specific content categories like gambling, (0x706f726e)ography, social media, and fake news sites. Users can choose the combination that matches their needs.

Steven Black maintains the project with automated tooling that fetches upstream sources, merges them, removes duplicates and dead domains, and publishes updated unified files. The automation ensures the list stays current as upstream sources evolve.

How We Use This Data

We check domains against the StevenBlack Unified Hosts list as part of our domain reputation analysis. When you look up a domain on robtex.com or rbls.org, we indicate whether it appears on this widely-used blocklist. Because StevenBlack aggregates multiple respected sources, a listing here signals broad consensus that a domain is associated with advertising, tracking, or malware.

This provides a useful community-consensus signal for domain reputation. A domain blocked by StevenBlack is one that multiple independent maintainers have independently identified as unwanted, which carries more weight than a listing on any single source.

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