In this tutorial, learn how to fix “This app has been blocked for your protection” prompt when you try to install a driver or application on Windows 10 PC.
When you attempt to install a driver or application in Windows 10, you might receive the following UAC error message:
This app has been blocked for your protection
or
An administrator has blocked you from running this app
Here are top 3 methods to help you fix the “This app has been blocked for your protection” in Windows 10.
How To Fix “This app has been blocked for your protection” in Windows 10
Method 1. Using elevated Command Prompt
To bypass the error “This app has been blocked for your protection“, you can run the application from an elevated Command Prompt. To do that, follow these steps below:
Step 1. Click Start menu and put “cmd“. Then right-click on Command Prompt in the search results and click on Run as administrator.
Step 2. Locate the app’s setup file and then right-click on it and click Properties. Copy and paste its location into Command Prompt and type the exact file name.
In my example, it would be C:\Users\Windows10freeapps\Downloads\FoxitReader93_enu_Setup_Clean.exe
Press Enter.
Step 3. When finished, you can close command prompt window.
Method 2. Disable Windows SmartScreen
Windows SmartScreen will block suspicious or unrecognized apps from running on your PC. If you are sure the files are safe, you could turn off Windows Defender SmartScreen. To do that, follow these steps below:
Step 1. Go from Start menu, click Settings.
Step 2. Select on Privacy.
Step 3. In General tab, under Turn on SmartScreen Filter to check web content(URLs) that Windows Store apps use, you can turn that switch on or off.
Method 3. Using Local Group Policy Editor
You can fix the error “This app has been blocked for your protection” by changing corresponding policy. To do so, follow these steps below:
Step 1. Press Windows Key + R then put gpedit.msc in run dialog box. Hit Enter to open Local Group Policy Editor. You can refer how to fix “Windows cannot find gpedit.msc” in Windows 10 from this tutorial.
If you cannot open gpedit.msc in Windows 10, read this post.
Step 2. In the left pane of Local Group Policy Editor, navigate to:
Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Local Policies > Security Options
Step 3. In the right pane, find the policy named User Account Control: Run all administrators in Admin Approval Mode and right-click on it and select Edit. Change the security setting to Disabled and click Apply > OK.
Step 4. Close Local Group Policy Editor and then reboot your computer.
Method 4. Using Registry Editor
The entire error reads, This app has been blocked for your protection. An administrator has blocked you from running this app. For more information, contact the administrator.
You would naturally think to disable Windows Security or Windows Defender, including User Account Control, would temporarily solve the problem, but not always. Instead, we can disable UAC in the registry so you can install your application. Here are the steps:
1. Press Windows Key + R and then type regedit in run dialog box. Click OK to open Registry Editor.
2. Go to the following path:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System
3. In the righ pane, find and double-click on EnableLUA. Change the Value data to 0.
4. Reboot your system
When done, go back and change the Value data to 1.
VIDEO TUTORIAL: How to Fix this App has Been Blocked for Your Protection Error in Windows 10
Hope something helps you.
