SOLVED: Stop “Open File – Security Warning This File is in a Location Outside of Your Local Network” by Whitelisting Specific Locations

If you are working on corporate network you may see important security popups that tell you the place you are launching a file or program from is not local. What this is trying to keep you safe from is accidentally opening files and programs from unsafe locations like random websites on the Internet.

This is a very good and useful alert you should pay attention to. However, if you are certain the location you are loading the program or file from is safe and you are doing that with some frequency you may want to disable the alert just for that location. Here’s how you can do that:

1. Open Internet Options:
2. Navigate to Security Settings:
   • Go to the SECURITY tab
   • Select LOCAL INTRANET and click on SITES
3. Configure Local Intranet Settings:
   • Check the boxes for “Include all local (intranet) sites not listed in other zones” and “Include all network paths (UNCs)”
   • Click the ADVANCED button
4. Add Network Locations:
   • In the ADVANCED window, add the network addresses or paths you want to whitelist
   • Click ADD button and then CLOSE button
5. Apply and Save Changes:
   • Click OK to close the Local intranet window
   • Click OK to save the changes in Internet Options

How To Disable The Security Popup For All Locations

If you want to stop seeing this popup alert for all locations, on step 4 above, enter an asterisk (yes, just the star * ) to include ALL network locations.

NOTE: This is generally a bad idea, but there are times when it may make sense for you to disable the popup alert completely.