A fake “Windows Defender Firewall Error” that pop-ups in the internet browser are another misleading tactic by cyber scammers. The purpose is to scare the web users and force them to call a paid technical support service.
To be more convincing, the “Windows Defender Firewall Error” was designed to appear as a valid system alert. It states several issues on the computer, including virus infection, hacker’s attack, information leak, and so on.
In order to fix the issue, the fake asserts that web user must call the provided number and seek help from a supposed Microsoft support expert. Here is an excerpt from the fake “Windows Defender Firewall Error”.
Windows Defender Firewall Error:
Access to this computer was blocked for security reasons. Please contact Windows Support.
Threat Detected – Trojan Spyware
App: Ads.financetrack(1).exe
Error code and Phone numbers
Below are the list of the error code that may appear on the browser alongside the associated scam Windows technical support phone numbers.
- Windows Defender Firewall Error: #80070422, 050-5479-4069
- Windows Defender Firewall Error: #ST43400X, 050-5479-3364
A technique by rogue programs
Fake pop-up alerts that displays “Windows Defender Firewall Error” could also be a message originating from a rogue security application. This bogus warning will attempt to deceive users and force them to update the program into licensed version, as usual, this is not for free. By clicking on any of the buttons, internet browser will be open and point to a payment processing website where a fraudulent transaction will take place. Aside from the charges, this website will gather banking information and used them without authorization of the credit card owner.
"Windows Defender Firewall Error" Removal Procedure
Below is a systematic instruction that is very useful in getting rid of the potentially unwanted program (PUP) from compromised Windows computer. Aside from removing the malicious browser extension, this guide is also helpful in deleting browser hijacker and pop-ups.
In order to totally eliminate the threat, it is vital to follow the process in exact manner.
Step 1 : Delete Suspicious Browser Extension
Most adware and unwanted programs are using a program called browser extension to be able to take over the settings of internet applications. Therefore, we highly recommend to check and remove any suspicious the extension from the affected browser program.
Remove Malicious Extension from Google Chrome
1. Open Google Chrome browser.
2. Type chrome://extensions/ in the address bar and press Enter on keyboard.
3. Find questionable entry and remove it from Google Chrome browser.
Uninstall Malware Extension from Mozilla Firefox
1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. Type about:addons in the address bar and press Enter on keyboard.
3. Choose Extensions on sidebar menu.
4. Look for suspicious object and remove it from the browser.
After deleting the malicious browser extension, it is expected that "Windows Defender Firewall Error" is also gone from the internet browser app.
Remove suspicious Add-ons from Internet Explorer and Edge Browser
1. Open Internet Explorer program.
2. Go to top Menu and click Tools. Then, select Manage Add-ons from the drop-down list.
3. Close the window and restart Internet Explorer.
If "Windows Defender Firewall Error" is still present on the IE browser and there are still unwanted homepage and pop-ups, another option is to remove the adware from Windows Control Panel.
4. Press Windows Key + R and then, type appwiz.cpl command.
5. Program and Features window will open. Arrange the list in chronological manner with recently installed applications on top. To do this, click on 'Installed On' column.
7. Select doubtful item or recently installed unwanted entry. Then, click on Uninstall to remove it from Windows system.
Step 2 : Scan the PC with Combo Cleaner for Windows
Combo Cleaner is a trusted PC security and optimization tool equipped with powerful virus and malware detection engine. This program can get rid of pop-up and redirect adware like "Windows Defender Firewall Error" through this procedure.
1. Download the application from the following page:
2. Save the file to your preferred location.
3. Double-click the downloaded file CCSetup.exe and install with the default settings.
4. At the end of the setup process, click Finish to run Combo Cleaner.
5. The tool will update the signature file, please wait for this process to complete.
6. To begin checking for threats like "Windows Defender Firewall Error", click on the Start Scan button. Wait for this scan to finish.
7. At the end of the scan process, click on Remove all threats to delete "Windows Defender Firewall Error" pop-up and redirect including all malicious objects from the computer.
Free features of Combo Cleaner for Windows include Disk Cleaner, Big Files finder, Duplicate files finder, and Uninstaller. To use antivirus, privacy scanner, and to delete identified threats, users have to upgrade to a premium version.
Please continue with the succeeding removal procedures if your are comfortable to manually get rid of the threat and malicious items linked with it.
Step 3 : Scan and Delete Adware with AdwCleaner
In addition to the procedure, we suggest scanning the computer with AdwCleaner tool. Possibly, there are some traces of "Windows Defender Firewall Error" on the browser that was not deleted during the preceding steps. This tool will scan the computer and check for presence of malicious applications as well as invalid browser entries that produces hijacking, redirects, and pop-ups.
1. Follow the link below to download the tool called AdwCleaner.
2. When the download has completed, please close all running programs on the computer especially browsers affected by "Windows Defender Firewall Error" pop-up.
3. Browse the location of the downloaded file and double-click on adwcleaner_Ver.exe to start running the tool. Then, click on Scan button.
4. AdwCleaner searches the computer for malicious programs, extensions, plug-ins, adware, and any items that may be associated to "Windows Defender Firewall Error". It will also check for suspicious entries on browser settings that is associated with the hijacker.
5. Clean or Remove all suspicious and harmful items identified after the thorough scan.
6. After the cleanup procedure, rebooting the computer is required to finalize the removal of detected threats.
Check if your internet browser application is no longer being bothered by "Windows Defender Firewall Error" pop-up. If the browser hijacker still persists, please continue with the steps below to reset internet programs to default settings.
Optional : Reset Internet Browser Program
Cleaning your internet browser from clutter and unwanted add-on/extension is a must when dealing with "Windows Defender Firewall Error". The procedure below discuss on resetting various browsers to its default state.
Restore Google Chrome to Default Settings
Resetting Google Chrome to default settings is helpful in deleting hard-to-remove extension such as from "Windows Defender Firewall Error". This method is highly advisable to perform if you have difficulty in removing unwanted extension.
1. Open Google Chrome Internet browser.
2. On the address bar, type chrome://settings/reset and press Enter key.
3. Under Reset and clean up section, choose Restore settings to their original defaults.
4. Click Reset settings button to clear all entries of "Windows Defender Firewall Error".
5. Close the existing tab and restart Google Chrome. That should have removed "Windows Defender Firewall Error" extension and associated objects.
Reset Mozilla Firefox to Default
This section describes how to remove unwanted extension from Firefox that may be related to "Windows Defender Firewall Error". This process can fix many browser issues by restoring Firefox to factory settings without affecting your essential information (bookmarks, browsing history, passwords, and Internet cookies) on the browser. If you desire to remove only specific extension, please see manual removal of add-on from Firefox.
1. Input the string about:support on Firefox web address and press Enter on keyboard.
2. You will now see the Troubleshooting Information page of Mozilla Firefox.
3. You will notice a section on upper-right corner of the screen stating Give Firefox a tune up. Click the Refresh Firefox button.
4. If confirmation window appears, click Refresh Firefox to continue.
5. Firefox browser will close and start the resetting process. When done, it will display a list of restored data. "Windows Defender Firewall Error" should be gone by now. Click Finish to open a fresh version of Firefox.
Restore Internet Explorer to Default Settings
1. Open Internet Explorer and navigate to top menu. Click Tools, and then Internet Options.
2. Select Advanced tab on Internet Options window.
3. On lower part of the window, under Reset Internet Explorer Settings area, click the Reset button. Please see image for reference.
Your data like favorites, bookmark, and history will remain in the browser. However, this process may delete add-ons by "Windows Defender Firewall Error" and other unknown objects. If you prefer to carry out the procedure manually, please add-on removal from Internet Explorer.
