Turn the use of checksums on or off

If you enable the use checksums to authenticate applications, when you trust or block applications they are identified based on their checksums automatically (you can also manually add checksums). If the application does not match a checksum it is blocked.

If you disable this option, applications are identified by their filename.

To turn the use of checksums to authenticate applications on or off:

  1. On the Home page, under Firewall, click Configure firewall.
    For information about the Home page, see About the Home page.
  2. Under Configurations, click Configure next to the location that you want to configure.
  3. Based on the operating system:
    • In Windows 7 and earlier operating systems, under Blocking, clear the Use checksums to authenticate applications check box.
    • On Windows 8 or later, click the Applications tab and clear the Use checksums to authenticate applications check box.
    To turn the use of checksums to authenticate applications on, select the check box.