Although it is a somewhat drastic method of protecting your computer, Microsoft makes it possible to disable all downloads in Internet Explorer.
There are several situations when disabling downloads in IE provides a temporary or permanent solution to protect your PC against viruses, worms, Trojan horses and other malware. Read on to know why and how to prevent users of your computer from downloading files.
Why disable downloads?
Some downloaded files are more dangerous to the security of your computer than others. Executable files with an * .exe file extension are particularly dangerous because those files, as their name implies, have an executable code. Unless you are absolutely certain that a downloaded executable file comes from a reliable source, you should never click on this type of file.
Ask any experienced computer administrator and he / she will tell you that the threat of viruses and other malicious programs increases exponentially as more people have access and use a PC. Even in a domestic environment, impatient children or inexperienced users are more likely to click on anything that seems attractive. Disabling the ability to download files is one thing you can do to protect your computer from the actions of these users.
Finally, if you have a guest account on your computer that anyone can use, you need a method to protect your PC from malicious downloads. The safest alternative is to not allow any downloads. After all, if a person does not have his own account on a computer and must use it, he has a strong incentive to protect himself against the actions of this occasional user.
Obviously, the biggest gap in this method is that someone can simply download Chrome or Firefox and download everything they want, right? Yes, so technically, you have to configure your computer so that it can only run IE or block the execution of Firefox and other browsers. You can read my previous post about setting the kiosk mode for an account in Windows 10, which is the first method.
To prevent other applications from running, you must configure something like AppLocker. However, this will not work if you have the Home version of Windows. It's a bit complicated to set up, so kiosk mode could be a better option if you just try to prevent your children from ruining your computer.
How to block downloads in IE
Fortunately, disabling downloads in IE is just a few clicks away. Start by opening IE and clicking on Tools in the menu bar Then click on Internet Options to open the Internet Options window.
In the Internet Options window, click on the tab Security and then click on the button Custom level located in the Security level section for this area.
You should now be looking at the Security Settings – Internet Zone window. In the Settings box, scroll to the Downloads section and look for an option titled File Download . Change this option Activated to disabled . Click on the button To accept .
IE now asks if you want to change the configuration of this zone. Click on To accept .
For this change to take effect, you must restart IE. Close IE and reopen it.
If you want to test the configuration, go to any accredited site and try to download a file. As an example, you can go to www.adobe.com and try to download Adobe Reader. Note that when you click to download the file, IE gives you a security alert and informs you that your security settings do not allow this file to be downloaded.
For maximum protection against malicious downloads, consider disabling downloads in IE completely. Although it is a drastic approach to computer security, this can be your most powerful weapon against malware when many people use your computer or if you have a guest account on your PC.
Disable downloads in group policy
If you are running the Pro version or higher of Windows, you can also configure this option in Group Policy. To do this, click Start and then type in the group policy.
This will open the local group policy editor. Now navigate to the next section:
Configuracin del equipo - Plantillas administrativas - Componentes de Windows - Internet Explorer - Panel de control de Internet - Pgina de seguridad - Zona de Internet
Once there, you should see an option on the right side called Allow file downloads .
Double click on that item and be sure to select the option button disabled .
Once again, you should do additional work to prevent tech users from finding other ways to avoid this restriction. It is always a good idea to disable access to the command prompt, since files can be downloaded that way easily. Enjoy!
