Business Websites Category for Web Filtering
Company websites, B2B services, manufacturers, professional firms and industry bodies. Business is the backbone of almost every workplace allow policy, and one of the largest categories in the database.
One of 59 web filtering categories, delivered with the IAB Content Taxonomy in one file.
What the Business category includes
Business covers sites whose main purpose is to present a company or sell to other organisations, where no more specific category fits better. These are the subtopics inside it.
Corporate websites
About-us, investor and press pages of companies of every size.
Manufacturers
Industrial makers, product catalogues, spec sheets and distributor locators.
B2B services
Outsourcing, facilities, cleaning, security guarding and staffing services for firms.
Professional services
Consulting, accounting, engineering, architecture and law firms' company sites.
Wholesale and distribution
Trade suppliers, wholesalers and procurement portals for business buyers.
Industry associations
Trade bodies, chambers of commerce and professional membership groups.
Trade publications
Industry magazines and B2B news for one sector, often with Business plus News/Media.
Business directories
Company listings, supplier directories and local business guides.
Company information
Company profile databases, registry lookups and business intelligence sites.
Trade shows and events
B2B exhibitions, conferences and event organisers for industries.
Agriculture and resources
Farming suppliers, mining, energy and forestry companies' corporate sites.
Construction and trades
Builders, contractors, plumbers, electricians and building materials suppliers.
Business advice
Startup guides, management advice and small business resource sites.
Office and print services
Printing, office supplies, signage and packaging for businesses.
What it excludes: the more specific categories come first
Almost every site is run by a business, so the Business category would swallow the web if it were used loosely. It is applied when no more specific category describes the site's main purpose. This ladder shows the order of checks.
Does the site exist mainly to take money, hold accounts or sell financial products?
Financial ServicesIs it mainly an online store or checkout for consumers?
ShoppingIs the main offer software, hardware or IT services?
Computers & TechnologyIs it a web application people log in to and work in?
Web-based ApplicationsIs it about jobs, hiring or careers?
Job Search/CareersIs the company in a sector with its own category, like travel, health or real estate?
That sectorNone of the above: a company presenting itself or selling to other firms
Business
Typical example site types
The category holds large corporate brands and an enormous tail of small firms. For a filter, the small ones matter: they are where staff find suppliers, specs and contacts every day.
The local contractor
A small building firm's brochure site with services, photos and a quote form.
The parts catalogue
A manufacturer's online catalogue with data sheets and CAD downloads for engineers.
The trade association
Member directory, standards documents and events for one industry.
The consultancy
Team pages, case studies and white papers from a professional services firm.
The B2B portal
Wholesale ordering, account statements and price lists for trade customers.
The corporate group
Holding company site with investor relations, reports and brand links.
The trade show
Exhibitor lists, floor plans and visitor registration for a B2B event.
The company register lookup
Profiles of firms, directors and filings for due diligence work.
Why Business is the backbone of allow policies
Strict environments often start from an allow list instead of a block list. Business, together with a few other work categories, is where that allow list begins.
Daily work
Suppliers, partners and customers all live here. Blocking it stops normal work in hours.
Locked-down networks
High-security sites allow Business, Government and a short list of tools, and block the rest.
Low false-block cost
Mislabelling a supplier as unknown costs time. Good coverage of small firms keeps tickets down.
Security overrides
Allowing Business is safe only if phishing and new-domain rules sit above it.
Who blocks or allows the Business category
This is the most widely allowed category in practice. The table shows the typical stance and the rules that sit on top of it.
| Environment | Typical action | Reasoning | Rules that sit on top |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporate networks | Allow | Core work category | Block Malware / Phishing / Suspicious and newly registered domains |
| Regulated industries | Allow | Part of the default allow list | Upload controls on storage and AI tools |
| High-security or OT networks | Allow list subset | Only named suppliers and portals | Default deny for everything else |
| K-12 schools (CIPA) | Allow | Careers, economics and business classes | CIPA-relevant categories blocked on any rank |
| Universities | Allow | Research, careers and partnerships | Security categories only |
| Guest Wi-Fi | Allow | Visitors need company and venue info | Adult and security categories |
| Parental control | Allow | Harmless for children | Not usually shown as a switch at all |
| Kiosks and shared terminals | Allow list | Only the venue's chosen sites | All other categories blocked |
Building a business filter product? Read web filtering software for business and the corporate web filtering overview for policy patterns.
Policy notes by subtopic
Business is rarely split into switches for end users, but product teams use subtopics for reports, risk scoring and allow lists. These notes cover the common cases.
| Subtopic | Work value | Risk pattern | Product note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corporate websites | High | Lookalike domains of big brands | Pair with brand-lookalike checks on new domains |
| Manufacturers | High for engineers | Large file downloads | Download scanning, not category blocks |
| B2B services | High | Low | Allow by default |
| Professional services | High | Low | Allow by default |
| Wholesale and distribution | High for procurement | Fake supplier sites | Flag new domains asking for bank transfers |
| Industry associations | Medium | Low | Allow by default |
| Trade publications | Medium | Low | Often ranked with News/Media |
| Business directories | Medium | Scraped contact lists | Allow; some directories carry Advertising |
| Company information | High for finance and legal | Low | Allow by default |
| Trade shows and events | Medium | Fake exhibitor list sellers | Watch new domains naming real events |
| Construction and trades | Medium | Low | Allow by default |
| Business advice | Medium | Low quality content farms | Allow; content farms may carry Advertising |
Multi-category cases
A domain can carry several categories, ranked by how much of the site they describe. In business, the second rank often holds the information a policy needs.
Allowed at work; consumer shopping limits only apply to the second rank if you choose.
Some firms restrict job sites on staff devices; the careers rank lets them.
Allowed everywhere; reported as industry news.
A work tool; keep all three ranks open for HR teams.
Alcohol leads, so school and family rules still apply.
The security rank blocks it even though it looks like a company.
Firms that block crypto services can act on the second rank.
Once parked, it leaves the allow list automatically.
Business-looking sites that are not what they seem
Attackers know that Business is allowed almost everywhere, so many scams dress up as companies. These patterns are why security ranks must always sit above the Business allow.
Fake supplier sites
Copies of a real supplier on a new domain, used to send changed bank details with an invoice.
Invoice and document lures
Pages that pretend to host a shared invoice and ask for an email login to view it.
Lookalike corporate domains
One letter changed or a different ending, built to fool staff reading quickly.
Fake directories and registries
Sites that charge firms for worthless listings or imitate official company registers.
Pair the Business category with our phishing and malware domain feed so these sites are blocked while real company sites stay open.
Building a "work essentials" allow list
Strict networks, such as operations floors, call centres or secure enclaves, often run on an allow list. This is how product teams usually build the preset around Business.
Start with Business, Government & Legal and the company's own domains.
BaseAdd the work tools staff log in to: mail, office suites, HR and finance systems.
ToolsAdd sector categories the team needs, such as Health & Medicine for clinics.
SectorKeep security categories blocked on any rank, whatever the allow list says.
OverrideHold newly registered domains until they are checked again.
New domainsReview blocked requests monthly and add missing suppliers by category, not by hand.
Review
Where company sites in each sector usually land
A quick reference for support teams who wonder why a company is not in Business. The lead category follows what the company mainly offers.
| Type of company | Usual lead category | Business as a lower rank? |
|---|---|---|
| Industrial manufacturer | Business | Not needed |
| Accounting or consulting firm | Business | Not needed |
| Bank or insurer | Financial Services or Online Banking | Often |
| Software company | Computers & Technology | Often |
| Online retailer | Shopping | Sometimes |
| Hotel group | Travel | Sometimes |
| Hospital group | Health & Medicine | Sometimes |
| Restaurant chain | Restaurants & Dining | Sometimes |
| Recruitment agency | Job Search/Careers | Often |
| Property developer | Real Estate | Often |
How vendors use the Business category in their products
The database is delivered as CSV, Parquet or JSON files that run inside your own systems, on-premise or air-gapped, with a lookup API included in licences.
Default allow lists
Ship Business as part of a "work essentials" preset for strict profiles.
Productivity reports
Split browsing into work and non-work time, with Business as the main work signal.
Phishing triage
A business-looking page on a days-old domain with a login form is a strong warning sign.
Firewall EDL exports
Licensed exports include external dynamic lists (EDL), PAC files and DNS RPZ.
B2B data and targeting
IAB labels in the same file help B2B ad and data teams find business audiences.
MSP templates
One allow baseline across many clients. See MSP web filtering.
Coverage and freshness for small business sites
New companies launch websites every day, and many start with a single holding page. These outputs keep their labels current.
Daily delta files
About 300,000 newly registered domains are categorized every day.
Week and month rechecks
New domains are checked again after a week and after a month, once real content appears.
Monthly refresh
All other domains are refreshed monthly, so closed firms move to parked.
Validation reports
Regular manual validations measure accuracy, with reports for licence holders.
Check how a supplier's site is labelled with the domain category lookup, or check a whole supplier list in one go.
Business category FAQ
What does the Business category include?
Corporate websites, B2B services, manufacturers, professional firms, industry associations, trade publications, directories and company information sites.
Is every company website in Business?
No. A bank ranks Financial Services, an online store ranks Shopping and a software vendor ranks Computers & Technology. Business is for sites where no more specific category leads.
Should the Business category ever be blocked?
Almost never. Security risks on business-looking sites are handled by Malware / Phishing / Suspicious and new-domain controls.
Why does a fake company site still get blocked?
Because the security rank overrides the Business allow. Ranked categories let one domain carry both labels.
Are small local businesses covered?
Yes. The 120 million domains include the long tail of small company sites, and new ones are added daily.
Where do company blogs go?
They follow the company's main category. Independent personal blogs go to Blogs/Personal Sites.
Do trade unions and professional bodies count as Business?
Usually yes, as industry and membership organisations. Groups focused on campaigning or elections rank Political first.
What about charities and non-profits?
They follow their main activity. A health charity often ranks Health & Medicine, a faith charity Religion & Spirituality, with Business sometimes as a lower rank.
Is the IAB taxonomy useful for business sites?
Yes. The IAB Content Taxonomy labels in the same file give finer business topics for ad tech, analytics and B2B data products.
Why is a supplier's site showing as uncategorized?
Very new domains may still be waiting for their first content. They are checked again after a week and after a month, and you can look them up at any time with the domain lookup tool.
Does the Business category help with productivity reporting?
Yes. Product teams use it as the main work signal when splitting browsing time into work and non-work, together with Web-based Applications and Government & Legal.
Can Business be split into industries?
For finer detail, use the IAB Content Taxonomy labels in the same file, which break business topics down by industry and subject.
Are franchise and dealer network sites in Business?
They follow what the network sells. A franchise of print shops ranks Business, while a network of car dealers ranks Automotive & Transportation first.
Can I license the category for a firewall or gateway product?
Yes, for OEM embedding, internal use or group-wide use. Starter database tiers start from $999; enterprise and OEM licences are quoted per deployment. See OEM licensing.
A business category you can build an allow list on
120 million categorized domains with ranked categories, daily new-domain deltas and monthly refreshes. Tell us about your product.