# Why can't I see Netflix images? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 22, 2007, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003 "2007-01-22T22:12:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [January 22, 2007, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/1 "2007-01-22T22:12:13Z")
When I go to my member page for Netflix from my work laptop _at work_, I can’t see any graphics- all tabs at the top (Browse, Recommendations, Friends, etc.), movie images and similar graphics show up as an empty box with a little red ‘x’ in the upper left hand corner. If I rightclick and select “Show Pictures”, nothing happens. But when I use the same laptop at home, on my home network, all images appear. I’ve not encountered this on any website but Netflix. I don’t think it’s an intentional effort my my company’s IT department to restrict my viewing, because (as I discovered quite accidentally), if I try to go to a restricted site, I get a “WARNING” page. It’s just that on the Netflix site, the images won’t load. Any idea why, and if there’s anything I can do about it? ---
**Author:** ![KlondikeGeoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2007, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/2 "2007-01-23T01:23:19Z")
This is driving me nuts. I had exactly the same problem, then found a way to fix it, but for the life of me I can’t remember. Stupid brain. I use Firebox browser, and think it was something in the Options, but looking don’t see anything that rings a bell. If you use Firebox, try going there in IE, or vice versa to see if that helps. If I can remember, I’ll come back and post it. Meanwhile, give them a call at 800-585-8131 or 888-638-3549 and see if they can help. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2007, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/3 "2007-01-23T02:32:41Z")
In Firefox, go to Tools \> Options \> Content tab. Under “Load Images” (which should be checked) uncheck “for the originating website only.” Netflix images load from a different URL than the address you use to access the site. ---
**Author:** ![biometricks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@biometricks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/biometricks)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2007, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/4 "2007-01-23T02:46:41Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] Netflix images load from a different URL than the address you use to access the site. [/QUOTE] The URL or IP address for the images is probably blocked by content filtering software. I use SurfControl at work to block traffic and stuff like this happens a lot with pictures, sometimes the URL is miscategorized as “Advertisments” so the get filtered. ---
**Author:** ![biometricks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecae2f/32.png) [@biometricks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/biometricks)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2007, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/5 "2007-01-23T03:01:00Z")
Yeah, the images are coming from [cdn.nflximg.com](http://cdn.nflximg.com) which SurfControl has under the “Infrastructure” category, while [netflix.com](http://netflix.com) is listed as “Entertainment”. That’s why the images get blocked but the rest of the page loads. You can test a sites catergory by going to [http://www.surfcontrol.com/](http://www.surfcontrol.com/) and selecting “Test a Site” from the menu bar. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2007, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/6 "2007-01-23T03:56:10Z")
[QUOTE=biometricks] Yeah, the images are coming from [cdn.nflximg.com](http://cdn.nflximg.com) which SurfControl has under the “Infrastructure” category, while [netflix.com](http://netflix.com) is listed as “Entertainment”. That’s why the images get blocked but the rest of the page loads. [/QUOTE] Yeah, I think you’re right; I missed the part where he said he used the same laptop from work and home. His employer must have content filtering on their network. There’s no way around that, short of the employer whitelisting the Netflix site. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2007, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/7 "2007-01-23T13:37:38Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] Yeah, I think you’re right; I missed the part where he said he used the same laptop from work and home. His employer must have content filtering on their network. There’s no way around that, short of the employer whitelisting the Netflix site. [/QUOTE] Harrumph. Sucks for me, I guess. “Hello, IT department? It’s McNew. Could you disable the filtering on my computer so I can while away my work hours fiddling with my Netflix queue? Cheers!” Thanks for the info. I’m on Internet Explorer 6.0, for what it’s worth. ---
**Author:** ![KlondikeGeoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3e96dc/32.png) [@KlondikeGeoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KlondikeGeoff)\ **Post date:** [January 23, 2007, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-cant-i-see-netflix-images/389003/8 "2007-01-23T15:32:21Z")
[QUOTE=Q.E.D.] In Firefox, go to Tools \> Options \> Content tab. Under “Load Images” (which should be checked) uncheck “for the originating website only.” Netflix images load from a different URL than the address you use to access the site. [/QUOTE] **That** was what I was referring to in my earlaier post that fixed the problem for me. I’ll remember next time!