web shield is blocking firefox

Hello ?
 
Welcome back to the Webroot Community.
 
 
 
There are essentially 3 key areas where this can happen/a user can override WSA.  These are essentially reached, from the main WSA panel, as follows:
 

1. PC Security > Block/Allow Files
2. Identity Protection > Application Protection
3. Utilities > System Control > Control Active Processes

and once there the user usually has the options to:
 

1. "Allow"
2. "Protect/Monitor"
3. "Block/Deny"

In the case of 1. Block/Allow Files
 
If an item is set to:
 
- "Allow", WSA ignores it during scans and shield actions, meaning if it's a virus that has been allowed, it can continue acting as a virus acts.  Be careful of what you allow in this area and ensure it's something you trust implicitly if you are going to change the status from Block to Allow.
 
- "Monitor", WSA will watch the item to determine if it is legitimate or related to malware.  It is not necessary to add files into this list or set files to monitor manually unless you are changing them from a Block or Allow status.  This might be useful if for example you think Webroot might have had a false positive on something and you want to check again at a later time to see if the determination has changed.  You could set it to Monitor and have Webroot check it again.
 
- "Block", then WSA will treat the items as it would detected malware.  It will not be executed, and it will not be written to your hard drive.  Detected infections are automatically set to a Block status.
 
In the case of 2. Protected Applications
 
In this case:
 
- "Allowed applications" are not secured against information-stealing malware, and also have full access to protected data on the system. Many applications unintentionally access protected screen contents or keyboard data without malicious intent when running in the background. If you trust an application that is currently marked as "Deny," you can change it to "Allow."
 
- "Protected applications" are secured against information-stealing malware, but also have full access to data on the system. By default, web browsers are assigned to the "protected" status. If desired, you might also want to add other software applications to "protected," such as financial management software. When you run a protected application, the Webroot icon in the system tray displays a padlock.
 
- "Denied applications" cannot view or capture protected data on the system, but can otherwise run normally.
 
And finally, in the case of 3. Control Active Processes
 
If a process is set to:
 
- "Allow" it means WSA allows it to run on the system. It's important to note that if an item is already allowed here, that's because Webroot knows already from seeing the file before that it's ok to allow.
 
- "Monitor" status means WSA will journal what that program is doing and keep a very close eye on it for any suspicious activity.  Basically it would treat it as if it wasn't already sure about it one way or the other, and it wants to monitor it closely until it's sure about it.
 
- "Block" means just that...WSA does not allow it to run on the system.  Be very careful about what you block in this area and ensure that anything you decide to block is a non-essential process.  Otherwise, you could be setting yourself up for a lot of grief if you block something critical.
 
Hope this info helps. Please let us know if you still need assistance, we will be happy to help.

 
bd
 
 

thanks for detailed reply.
 
I don't understand why by default, webroot should prevent such a ubiquitous application as firefox from starting.
the only option that worked for me was to go into identity protection and allow firefox.
It is a shame that this very important process will not have identity protection from now on.
why should firefox have to get along with less protection than chrome and IE?
I think this should be fixed.

Hello ?
 
This is not normal behavior for Webroot to block Firefox. If you can, please try a clean install to try and fix this problem.
 
Please follow the steps closely!
 

• Make sure you have a copy of your 20 Character Alphanumeric Keycode! Example: SA69-AAAA-A783-DE78-XXXX
• KEEP the computer online for Uninstall and Reinstall to make sure it works correctly
• Download a Copy Here (Best Buy Subscription PC users click HERE)
• Uninstall WSA and Reboot
• Install with the new installer, enter your Keycode and don't import any settings if asked to as you can set it up as you like once it's done
• Let it finish it's install scan
• Reboot once again

 
Also. Please set Firefox to "Protect" in Idenity Protection/Application Protection, as this is the default setting and will keep firefox protected.

 
Please let us know if that resolves your issue?
 
Thanks,

 
bd

@ wrote:
thanks for detailed reply.
 
I don't understand why by default, webroot should prevent such a ubiquitous application as firefox from starting.
the only option that worked for me was to go into identity protection and allow firefox.
It is a shame that this very important process will not have identity protection from now on.
why should firefox have to get along with less protection than chrome and IE?
I think this should be fixed.

I think it was simply an error, overall pretty rare, that happened during the install that it failed to automatically pick up Firefox.
 
The entire time I have used WSA, including Beta testing (So I tend to re-install a LOT more than anyone wants to even think about ) FireFox has always automatically been picked up and included in Identity Protection.
 
I am sorry you had an issue with it, but 99% of the time it goes right.  Just like anything else, once in a while something goes wrong, but I am glad BD has you up and going!

I followed the instructions but the problem persists.
I uninstalled, rebooted, installed, scanned, rebooted. and I did not import any settings.
still, the only way I can get firefox to work is by allowing it in identity protecton.
my system is windows 10 pro x64 with nov update, and I have a purchased WSA licence, not a trial one.

Hi ?
 
Can I ask what happens if you set Firefox to "Protect" in Identity Protection/Application Protection?
 
Thanks,
 
bd

it shuts down right away

Ok, Thanks ? for letting me know.
 
The only other thing I can think to try would be to reinstall Firefox, it can be downloaded here.
 
If that still doesn't help I would recommend you submit a trouble ticket to let support have a look for you.
 
Thanks,
 
bd

I uninstalled firefox, and reinstalled, but no joy.
I will open a ticket.

Hello and Welcome to the Webroot Community!
 
May I ask where you got your version of Firefox from? Did you get it from here? https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/all/
 
Thanks,
 
Daniel 😉

I got my first copy from the link below.
after that, I uninstalled and reinstalled from the link provided by webroot support
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/?product=firefox-3.6.8&os=osx%E2%8C%A9=en-US

@ wrote:
I got my first copy from the link below.
after that, I uninstalled and reinstalled from the link provided by webroot support
https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/?product=firefox-3.6.8&os=osx%E2%8C%A9=en-US

This is very odd, any other info from support about this as it works perfectly fine on my systems as Firefox is my Primary Browser. Please keep in Contact with support and let us know what they come up with.
 
Thanks,
 
Daniel 😉

so far they have come up with nothing.
looks like I have to choose between webroot and firefox.
 

Is it possible you have an extension in Firefox that conflicts for some reason with Webroot ?

no, because the problem began the very moment I installed firefox, before I even got to the welcome page.
that was well before I could install any add-ins.
I simply could not get it to start.

@ wrote:
no, because the problem began the very moment I installed firefox, before I even got to the welcome page.
that was well before I could install any add-ins.
I simply could not get it to start.

Again contact Support as a couple of others are having this issue and I want to know what the issue is! Webroot Customer Service
 
https://community.webroot.com/t5/Webroot-SecureAnywhere-Complete/Firefox/m-p/229687#M14939
 
https://community.webroot.com/t5/Webroot-SecureAnywhere-Complete/blocking-firefox-and-internet-explorer/m-p/229459#M14917

@ wrote:

@ wrote:
no, because the problem began the very moment I installed firefox, before I even got to the welcome page.
that was well before I could install any add-ins.
I simply could not get it to start.

Again contact Support as a couple of others are having this issue and I want to know what the issue is! Webroot Customer Service
 

Me too !
 
Does firefox show as a blocked application in PC Security ( click the little wheel to the right of PC security - then select the third tab "Block/Allow Files" ?

I have sent an email to my Webroot Contacts and asked them to look into it as this is not normal as I'm using Firefox to write this. Also I pointed them to this thread.
 
Thanks,
 
Daniel 😉

I checked and I have no blocked files.

maybe the issue only affects people who are installing firefox now for the first time, like I did, after having installed WSA.
I suspect that there is something in the latest version of firefox that conflicts with webroot upon installation. 

We in the Community can't do anything more so just do as I suggested above and wait for a reply and someone should by tomorrow at this time.
 
Thanks,
 
Daniel

thanks for showing interest in the problem.
It seems that tech support has given up on it for the time being
I take it that the problem has no known solution

@ wrote:
thanks for showing interest in the problem.
It seems that tech support has given up on it for the time being
I take it that the problem has no known solution

I have contacted someone in the support department and they will be looking into it ASAP.
 
Thanks,
 
Daniel

It looks like we do have a recent enough copy of your logs to investigate, so disregard the latest message to upload logs again from support.  We're going to analyze what we have and get back to you with what we find out.

This is still happening.  Is there any resolution yet?
I have tried:
- re-install FireFox from scratch (after removing EVERYTHING about FF including any registry entries and anything on disk at all)
- re-install WebRoot
 
FF crashes when it is run (100% reproducible).
The only way to make it not crash is to turn off "Application Protection" or to disable WebRoot entirely.
 
May we please have a solution?  Looks like this has been an issue for quite some time.
 
Thanks,
Peter.