Advanced Protection affects AppBlock blocking on Android
Since Android 17, Android includes a security feature called Advanced Protection. On supported devices, this feature can restrict or disable Accessibility access for apps.
AppBlock relies on the Accessibility permission to detect what is happening on your device and apply blocking reliably.
Because of this, if Advanced Protection is enabled, AppBlock will lose access to Accessibility or may not be able to use it correctly. This can cause blocking to work inconsistently or stop working as expected.
We have carefully investigated whether AppBlock can work around this restriction while Advanced Protection remains enabled. At the moment, Android does not provide us with another way to ensure the same level of reliable blocking.
This behavior is controlled by Android at the system level and cannot be changed from within AppBlock.
How to fix it
If AppBlock is not blocking reliably and you have Advanced Protection enabled, try turning off Device protection:
- Open your device’s Settings.
- Go to Security & privacy.
- Open Advanced Protection.
- Turn off Device protection.
- Confirm the change if requested.
- Restart your device if Android asks you to.
You may also find this setting under:
Settings → Google → All services → Personal and device safety → Advanced Protection
After turning it off, open AppBlock and make sure the Accessibility permission is enabled again.
Why is Accessibility important?
Accessibility allows AppBlock to detect when blocked apps or settings are opened and react immediately.
Without this permission, AppBlock cannot provide the same level of reliable blocking, so some blocked content or device settings may remain accessible.
