Installing the application is blocked on Android - how to fix?

Installing Android applications from both the Play market and in the form of a simple APK file downloaded from somewhere can be blocked, and, depending on the specific scenario, different reasons and messages are possible: about the installation of the application is locked by the administrator, to block application installation from applications from Unknown sources, information from which it follows that the action is prohibited or that the application was blocked by Play Protection.

In this manual, consider all possible cases of blocking the installation of applications on Android phone or tablet, how to fix the situation and install the desired APK file or something from the Play Market.

1. In order to safety on the device, installing applications from unknown sources is blocked.
2. Installing the application is locked by the administrator
3. Action is prohibited. The function is disabled. Contact your administrator.
4. Blocked Play Protection

Permission to install applications from unknown sources on Android

The situation with the locked installation of applications from unknown sources on Android devices is perhaps the simplest to the correction. If you can see the message "For security purposes, your phone blocks the installation of applications from unknown sources" or "For security purposes on the device, the installation of applications from unknown sources is blocked, this is exactly the case.

Such a message appears if you download the APK application file not from official stores, but from some sites or get from someone. The solution is very simple (items name can be slightly different on different versions of Android OS and manufacturers launchers, but logic is the same):

1. In the window that appears with the block message, click "Settings", or go to the settings yourself - Safety.
2. In the "Unknown Sources" item, enable the ability to install applications from unknown sources.

   

3. If the Android 9 PIE is installed on your phone, then the path may look slightly different, for example, on Samsung Galaxy with the latest version of the system: Settings - biometrics and security - Installing unknown applications.

   

4. And then permission to install unknowns is given for specific applications: for example, if you run the Installation APK from a specific file manager, then the permission must be given to it. If immediately after downloading the browser is for this browser.

   

After performing these simple actions, it is enough just to re-start the installation of the application: this time the blocking messages should not appear.

Installing the application is locked by an administrator on Android

In case you see a message that the installation is blocked by the administrator, it is not about any person-administrator: on Android, this is meant an application that has particularly high rights in the system, among them may be:

• Built-in Google Means (for example, tool "Find Phone").
• Antiviruses.
• Parental control means.
• Sometimes - malicious applications.

In the first two cases, correct the problem and unlock the installation is usually simple. The last two is more difficult. The simple method consists of the following steps:

1. Go to Settings - Security - Administrators. On Samsung with Android 9 PIE - Settings - Biometrics and Security - Other security settings - device administrators.

   

2. Check the list of device administrators and try to determine what it can interfere with the installation. By default, "Find Device", "Google Pay", as well as branded applications of the phone or tablet manufacturer applications may be present in the Administrators list. If you see something else: Antivirus, an unknown application, then you may have exactly block the installation.
3. In the case of anti-virus programs, it is better to use their settings to unlock the installation, for other unknown administrators - click on this device administrator and, if we are lucky and "Deactivate device administrator" or "Turn off" is active, click on this item. ATTENTION: In the screenshot, just an example, disable "Find the device" is not needed.

   

4. After turning off all dubious administrators, try repeating the installation of the application.

A more complex scenario: you see the Android administrator that blocks the installation of the application, but the function of its disconnection is not available, in this case:

• If it is anti-virus or other protective software, and using the settings cannot solve the problem, simply delete it.
• If this is a parental control tool - you should contact the resolution and change of settings to the one who installed it is not always possible to disable it independently without consequences.
• In a situation where blocking, presumably produced by a malicious application: Try to delete it, and if it fails, then restart Android in a secure mode, then try to disable the administrator and delete the application (or in reverse order).

Action is prohibited, the function is disabled, contact the administrator when installing the application

For a situation where when installing the APK file, you see a message that the action is prohibited and the function is disabled, most likely, the case in parental controls, such as Google Family Link.

If you know that parental control is installed on your smartphone, contact a person who installed it so that it unlocks the installation of applications. However, in some cases, the same message may appear with those scenarios that were described by section above: if there is no parental control, and you receive the reporting message that the action is prohibited, try to go through all the steps with the disabling device administrators.

Blocked Play Protection

The message "Blocked Play Protection" When installing the application tells us that the built-in Google Android function to protect against viruses and malware considered this APK file dangerous. If we are talking about some applied application (game, useful program), I would take a warning seriously.

If this is something initially potentially dangerous (for example, a root access tool) and you are aware of the risk, you can turn off the blocking.

Possible steps for installation, despite the warning:

1. Press "Details" in the blocking message window and then "set".

   

2. You can forever remove the "Play Protection" lock - go to Settings - Google - Security - Google Play Protection.

   

3. In the Google Play Protection window, disable the "Check security threat" item.

   

After these actions, blocking from this service will not happen.

I hope the instruction helped figure out the possible reasons for blocking applications, and you will be careful: not everything you download is safe and not always it really is worth installing.