OpenDNS opened up access to its new domain tagging system that lets users decide how sites should be categorized. The categorizations can then be used to control Web access.

Anyone with an OpenDNS account can submit a site to one of 31 categories. Other OpenDNS users then vote on whether the site is categorized properly. Once the number of votes crosses an unspecified threshold, the site will become officially categorized.

OpenDNS likens its approach to that used by PhishTank.com, a popular anti-phishing site. The company said it thinks its new category offering is more effective than using paid URL filtering lists that give users no control over site categorization.

OpenDNS claims to have more than 3 million users worldwide. Those users configure their TCP settings to use OpenDNS servers for host name lookups. The new URL categorization tool is an added feature that lets users configure specific categories to block thereby preventing a system from inadvertently accessing unwanted content.