How to Disable Norton Antivirus

Norton antivirus software protects your computer from various types of malware and other nefarious attacks intended to obtain your personal information or simply wreak havoc on your device. Occasionally it can be too protective and block programs that you actually do trust from performing their necessary duties. In those cases, you'll want to turn off Norton at least temporarily.

How to Disable Norton Antivirus in Windows

When you need to temporarily turn off Norton while you accomplish the tasks at hand, follow these steps.

1. Right-click the Norton Security icon, located in the notification section of your Windows taskbar.

2. When the pop-up menu appears, select Disable Auto-Protect.

3. A Security Request dialog should now appear, overlaying your desktop and other active applications. Select the drop-down menu labeled Select the duration.

4. Choose the amount of time that you'd like Norton's Auto-Protect functionality to remain off by selecting one of the following options: 15 minutes, 1 hour, 5 hours, Until system restart or Permanently.

   If you'd like to completely disable Norton's antivirus protection for an indeterminate period of time, select the Permanently option.

5. Select OK to turn off Norton protection for the specified duration.

6. If you'd like to re-enable Norton protection at any point prior to the time specified, repeat steps 1 and 2 above and select Enable Auto-Protect.

How to Disable Norton Firewall in Windows

In addition to turning off Norton's antivirus protection, you may also want to disable its firewall as well. This could be useful if you're using another firewall instead, such as the built-in Windows version, or if you have a need to allow all incoming and outgoing traffic to your PC for a specific amount of time. 

Disabling your firewall could prove dangerous, so proceed with caution. To do so, simply follow the steps above, replacing Auto-Protect with Smart Firewall where applicable.

1. Start Norton.

2. Select Settings.

3. Select Firewall.

4. Under General Settings, in Smart Firewall, turn Off by toggling switch.

5. Select Apply.

6. You may get prompted for a duration, select the amount of time then select OK.

How to Disable Norton Antivirus in macOS

Disabling your antivirus protection could prove dangerous, so proceed with caution.

1. Select Norton Security, located in your macOS Dock. It appears as a yellow circle with a white interior and a black check mark in its foreground. 

2. The Norton Security interface should now be displayed, overlaying your desktop.

3. Select Advanced.

4. Select Protect My Mac, located in the left menu, if it's not already selected.

5. Ensure that Automatic Scans and Idle Scans options are disabled (gray).

   Your Mac is vulnerable while these protection features are turned off, so be wary of what websites you visit or actions you take during this time period.

6. To re-enable Norton virus protection at any point, repeat these steps and turn both Automatic Scans and Idle Scans options back on by selecting their respective settings.

How to Disable Norton Firewall in macOS

Disabling your firewall could prove dangerous, so proceed with caution.

1. Select Norton Security, located in your macOS Dock. It appears as a yellow circle with a white interior and a black check mark in its foreground.

2. The Norton Security interface should now be displayed, overlaying your desktop.

3. Select Advanced.

4. Select Firewall, located in the left menu pane.

5. Toggle off (gray) the options for Connection Blocking and Vulnerability Protection.

6. To re-enable Norton's firewall at any point, repeat these steps and turn both Automatic Scans and Idle Scans options back on by selecting their respective toggles.