Bitdefender Firewall multiple popups every day

Hi - this has become a bit of a nuisance, and it's asking me to allow stuff that I think the designers would know better than I. Some days I seem to spend more time responding to these than I do actually working :-(

Lots of popups - E.g. 'The application rundll32 has changed and is attempting to connect to the internet'.
I get many of these, very few referring to apps I know - like my browsers, some referring to obscure things that I think are part of Windows. But I don't know them or if I should allow them, I expected bitdefender to know or at least give me guidance.

Have I got some setting wrong?

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Accepted answers

Scott

Hi @Ognik

You probably don't have a setting wrong, but maybe that you're using Alert mode in the Firewall settings?

If so, consider disabling it, as I think Bitdefender by default knows, has a good handle on what is supposed to ("whitelist") be allowed regarding connections.

Kind regards.

Alexandru_BD

Indeed, with Alert mode (former Paranoid Mode) enabled, alerts are shown each time an app tries to connect to the internet, and you can select Allow or Block. If you allowed a certain application to connect to the internet using a certain connection type through the Alert Mode prompt, a rule will be permanently created in the Firewall Rules and the notification pop-up won't appear anymore. Here's an overview of the Firewall in Bitdefender and what it can do:

https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/answer/2082/

I think the default Firewall setup is pretty strong, and there are of course some advantages when keeping the Alert Mode enabled. This feature allows a more granular control, meaning that you can decide in real-time whether to allow or block connections for specific applications, ensuring tight control over your network. This proactive approach prevents unauthorized or suspicious applications from accessing the network, reducing the risk of data breaches or malware communication. It also provides visibility into which applications or services are attempting to access the internet, helping you identify unusual or unexpected activity. And you can create rules based on the alerts, tailoring the firewall settings to your specific needs. The feature is especially useful for monitoring applications that may send data to unknown or suspicious servers.

However, I think there is also a downside. The constant prompts for decision-making can be overwhelming, especially if you're unfamiliar with the applications or network activity, or need to focus on work.
It also requires you to be more alert, as the name suggests, because blocking a necessary application by mistake can lead to issues with software functionality. On the other hand, allowing a malicious connection inadvertently could compromise security. Bottom line is, each alert requires attention, which can disrupt productivity, particularly if you encounter many new or unknown applications.

Understanding which connections are safe or necessary does require a degree of technical knowledge that not all users possess, so I think this feature is designed for more tech-savvy users. Furthermore, in environments with a large number of applications (e.g., corporate settings), this mode can become unmanageable without clear policies or automation. But this is just my personal opinion.

Should you wish to disable/enable this feature, you can find it under Protection on the left side menu of the Bitdefender UI, go to Firewall → Settings, where you can toggle the switch for Alert Mode ON/OFF, according to your preferences:

I hope this helps.

Regards,

Alex

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