Fix: Allow Chrome To Access The Network In Your Firewall or Antivirus Setting

Being a Chrome user, you may have encountered many errors. The error message “Allow Chrome to access the network in your firewall or antivirus settings” is one of them. First of all, this is not a primary error. It appears as a suggestion whenever a major issue takes place in the Google Chrome browser.

There could be many network-related issues due to which this error can show up on the web browser. From the name of the error message, you can easily understand that the error is absolutely for the Chrome browser. The factors behind this issue may influence other browsers to face this type of error message.

In this article, we have come up with the simplest solution to solve the error appearing on the computer screen. Hence, read the instructions in the below-mentioned methods carefully before applying them.

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Reason Behind the Chrome Network Access Error

To safeguard your computer from the attack of viruses, malware, web spam, the system is protected by a firewall, defender, etc. Moreover, you may have installed an antivirus program or anti-malware software to create a shield against these infectious components.

But, in spite of all these protection, sometimes, the antivirus or anti-malware program stops Chrome to access the Internet. This is because they have found some threats while monitoring your online activity. So, a simple change in the settings of the programs can fix the problem.

This error can directly relate to the malfunction in DNS settings as well. In this case, the primary error can show up like “DNS_PROBE_FINISHED_BAD_CONFIG”.

So, how to allow Chrome to access the network in your firewall or antivirus settings? Have a look at the next section and follow the guidelines to resolve this bothersome error. 

Methods to Solve “Allow Chrome to Access the Network in your Firewall or Antivirus Settings”

Among many errors, this error is very common that can pop up on the browser screen anytime. The best thing about the error message is that it comes with the solution. So, we will start with the basic approach to eliminate the root cause of the error.

Method 1: Allow Apps in Windows Firewall Settings

As discussed before, the Windows Firewall may block some programs to access the network in terms of protection.

In general, the firewall monitors and controls the web traffic based on some predefined security protocols. It acts as a shield between the trusted networks and untrusted networks. That’s why it may require to block some programs to protect your system from any harm.

You can add exceptions to Windows firewall settings in order to stop the error. Follow the below-mentioned steps to allow Chrome firewall settings.

• Go to the Control Panel window and find the “Windows Firewall” from the item list. You may find it in the “System and Security” section.
• Click on the item and a new window will open. In the left panel of the window, click on the “Allow program or feature through Windows Firewall” option.
• Now, you will get to see a list of installed applications. So, look for Google Chrome in the list. If you don’t find the same, you can click on “Allow another program…” and add Google Chrome from the list just opened.
• Check whether the status of Google Chrome is blocked or not. Make sure to check both the boxes below the Private and Public.
• Click on OK and restart the browser to reflect the changes.

Note: You can also disable the Windows firewall temporarily if the exception does not work properly.

Now, look if “Allow Chrome to access the network in your firewall or antivirus settings” error message is still there or not.

Method 2: Add Exception to the Antivirus Web Shield

The antivirus programs not only protect the system from viruses but, also has a special feature of a Web Shield. This shield protects the system from online threats and may block some suspicious sites.

So, if the error occurs due to certain factors of the Web Shield, you can temporarily add an exception to the feature. We will now discuss how to add an exclusion in the Avast antivirus. The process is almost the same for the other antiviruses as well.

Adding Exclusion to Avast Web Shield

Firstly, go to the Avast Settings and click on “Avast Protection”. You can see the “Customize” link placed next to Web Shield. A new window will open and click on the “Exclusions” option placed on the left panel of the same window.

Type the URL for the specific websites in space provided below the “URLs to exclude” option and click on “Add”. Tap on “OK” two times to complete the process.

Apart from that, you can try to disable the “Web Shield” by clicking on the “ON” button on the “Active Protection” page of the Avast Settings. Follow the correct instruction to turn off this feature.

Hopefully, this method will prevent “Allow Chrome to access the network in your firewall or antivirus settings” error to show up after restarting the web browser.

Method 3: Add Exception to the Windows Defender

Many users reported that adding exceptions to the Windows Defender solves this error with immediate effect. We have discussed the steps by following which one can easily add exceptions in the Windows Defender.

• Go to the Control Panel window and click on the Windows Defender. You may search for the option in the System and Security settings.
• Now, click on “Tools” on the top panel to open the “Tools and Settings” window.
• Click on the “Options” under “Settings”. In the left panel of the newly opened window, look for “Exclude files and folders” and hit on that option.
• Select the “Add” button on the right side of that window. Now, click on the “Browse for Files or Folders” tab, then navigate “Computer > C > Program Files (x86)”.
• Look for “Google” and select that option. Hit on OK and “Save” buttons to complete the process.
• Close the window and restart the browser to see if the error is still there.

Note: For Windows 10 users, navigate “Settings > Windows Defender > Windows Defender Security Center >Virus and threat protection > Virus and Threat Protection Settings > Add or Remove Exclusions > Exclude a folder > Select the Google Chrome Directory”. Click on OK and you are done.

If you have any anti-malware program installed in the system, do the same as mentioned above in the last two methods. In this post, we make you familiar with the best methods to get rid of this “Allow Chrome to access the network in your firewall or antivirus settings” message on the browser window. We hope the error will not bother you anymore after applying the methods.