Want to stop an app from accessing the internet on Windows 11? Here’s how…
Firewalls play an integral part in keeping computers and networks safe, but you can also use them to control an application’s access to the internet. The Windows Defender Firewall is a powerful security utility pre-installed in Windows 11. You can easily block a program from accessing the internet using the Windows Defender Firewall.
Whatever your reasons might be for preventing an app from accessing the internet, we’ve got you covered. Read on as we detail how you can block apps from accessing the internet in just a few clicks.
How to Block an Apps Internet Access Using Windows Defender Firewall
Windows Defender Firewall is a nifty built-in firewall program that you can configure in a few clicks. Blocking a program’s access to the internet means you prevent it from sending or receiving any network traffic.
There can be many benefits of blocking an app from communicating on the internet, but it can also come with potential security risks.
To block an application from using the internet using Windows Defender Firewall:
- Launch the Start menu, search for Windows Defender Firewall and click the Best match.
- In the Control Panel window that opens, click on Advanced settings from the left sidebar, and it will launch the Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security window.
- From the left side menu, click on Outbound rules and select New Rule from the Actions pane on the right side of the screen. A New Outbound Rule Wizard should now launch.
- We want to create a rule to block a program from accessing the internet, so you need to select Program in the New Outbound Rule Wizard and then click on Next.
- Since you only want to block a specific program, you need to specify the program path and select the program’s EXE file; this is usually located in the Program Files directory of your PC.
- Check the This program path radio button, click on Browse, select the executable file of the program, and click on Next.
- Select Block the connection and then click on Next.
- Check Domain, Private and Public, and click on Next.
- You can now give your rule a name and a description, and a descriptive name can help keep track of the firewall rules if something goes wrong, and finally click on Finish.
You have now successfully blocked the app from accessing the internet.
How to Disable the Windows Defender Firewall Rule
If you’ve set up an Outbound Rule in the past, but now wish to restore an app’s access to the internet, you will need to disable or delete the added rule. Let’s look at how you can disable or remove an Outbound Rule in Windows Defender Firewall.
- Launch the Start menu, search for Windows Defender Firewall and click the Best match.
- In the Control Panel window that opens, click on Advanced settings from the left sidebar, and it will launch the Windows Defender Firewall with Advanced Security window.
- In the above section, we added a new rule named Adobe Internet Block, so we’re going to remove it now. Click on Outbound Rules from the left pane and search for your rule from the list. Once you’ve found your rule, select it.
- From the Actions pane on the right side, you can either completely delete the rule by clicking on Delete or temporarily disable it by selecting Disable Rule.
Your outbound rule will now either be deleted or disabled based on your selection, meaning the program can now access the internet freely.
Blocking Apps From the Internet in Windows 11
Thanks to Windows Defender Firewall, blocking an app from the internet takes only a few clicks. If you had the belief that configuring a firewall on your Windows PC is too technical for you, we hope this guide helped you prove otherwise.
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