How To Disable The Windows Defender Summary Notification In Windows 10

Windows defender scans apps, links, and files for malicious content. It runs in the background and keeps us safe. If it ever finds a problem with a recently installed app or newly downloaded file, it lets us know. Of course, when it doesn’t find anything, it also lets us know. You may have seen the ‘Windows Defender Summary’ notification appear on your screen almost everyday. It tells you that Windows Defender ran a scan and found nothing. The app basically lets you know all is well but it does so rather frequently. If you find this unnecessary, you can disable the Windows Defender Summary notification in Windows 10.

To be clear, this will not turn Windows Defender off. It will continue to run in the background and keep you safe. Moreover, we do not recommend turning Windows Defender off unless you have a different anti-virus installed. Windows Defender is there for your protection. The way to disable the Windows Defender Summary notification will differ based on your Windows build. This is because Windows Defender is a stand alone app as of the Creators Update.

Before Creators Update

Open the Settings app and go to the Security and Update group of settings. Go to the Windows Defender tab and scroll down to the ‘Enhanced Notifications’ section. Turn of Enhanced Notifications, and it will disable the Windows Defender Summary notification.

After Creators Update

You need to open the Windows Defender app. The simplest way to do this is to double-click the Windows Defender icon in the system tray. If you’ve disabled the icon, you can search for the app in Windows Search or get to it via the Settings app.

Once you have the Windows Defender app open, go to the Virus and Threat protection tab.

Scroll down and click ‘Virus and threat protection settings’. On the next screen, scroll down to the Notifications section and click ‘Change notification settings’. Here, turn off the ‘Receive recent activity and scan results’ under the ‘Windows Defender Antivirus notifications’ section.

Critical Event Notifications

This will turn off the summary notifications you get each time Windows Defender completes a scan. It will not disable any critical alerts. For example, if it detects a malicious app or link, you will get an alert telling you to take action. If you ever need to check when the last scan was run, you can do so by opening the Windows Defender app and looking at the home screen. There are additional details for the recent scan under Virus & threat protection.

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Fatima Wahab

Fatima has been writing for AddictiveTips for six years. She began as a junior writer and has been working as the Editor in Chief since 2014. Fatima gets an adrenaline rush from figuring out how technology works, and how to manipulate it. A well-designed app, something that solves a common everyday problem and looks

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