How to fix defender issues on my Windows PC

Question

When I try to view alerts in defender, it says "Something went wrong, wait a bit and try again later" I have been trying for weeks and get the same error.

Answer 1

Hi @Charles Thomas , Welcome in Community

First step, try to clear the Corrupted Protection History:

1. Open File Explorer and navigate to: C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows Defender\Scans\History\Service (You will need to check "Hidden items" in the View tab to see ProgramData).
2. Delete all the files and folders inside the Service folder.
3. Note: If you get an "Access Denied" prompt even as an administrator, Windows Defender's Tamper Protection is locking the folder. You will need to temporarily toggle off Tamper Protection in the settings (if it allows you to load that page) or boot into Safe Mode to clear the directory.
4. Restart the machine. Windows will rebuild a fresh, uncorrupted history database on boot.

If not solved, try to reset the Windows Security App Package:

Press WIN + X and open terminal as admin, then type

Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.SecHealthUI -AllUsers | Reset-AppxPackage

Let me know how it goes

Elvis

Answer 2

what does event id 5007 mean

Answer 3

All I see is windows defender firewall

Answer 4

Try this in order:

1. Restart the PC A restart is a supported first step for Defender service issues.
2. Check whether the Microsoft Defender Antivirus service is running
   • Press Start and open services.msc.
   • Select Windows Defender Antivirus Service.
   • Verify Startup Type is Automatic.
   • On the Action menu, select Start.
   • If Start is unavailable, select Stop, wait for it to stop, and then select Start again.
3. Check for a stopped threat service symptom If Windows Security shows messages like Threat service has stopped. Restart it now or Unexpected error. Sorry, we ran into a problem. Please try again., close the error and continue with the service checks above.
4. Remove any third-party antivirus or security software Third-party security products can prevent Defender from working correctly.
   • Open appwiz.cpl.
   • Uninstall any third-party security program.
   • Restart the PC.
   • Some products do not uninstall completely and may require their cleanup utility.
   Caution: removing security software can temporarily leave the PC unprotected.
5. Make sure the PC has internet connectivity Defender alert and cleanup operations can fail when connectivity is broken.
   • Open ncpa.cpl.
   • Open the active connection and check Status.
   • Confirm IPv4 connectivity or IPv6 connectivity shows Internet.
   • If not, select the connection and run Diagnose this connection.
6. Check Defender event logs for a more specific error
   • Press Windows key + R, type eventvwr.msc, and select OK.
   • Go to Applications and Services Logs > Microsoft > Windows > Windows Defender > Operational.
   • Review recent events.
   • If needed, use Find or Filter in the Actions pane.
   Useful examples:
   • Event ID 2021 means Defender failed to download a clean file and the documented user action is to check internet connectivity.
   • Event ID 2031 indicates offline scan download/configuration failed.
7. Update Defender protection and Windows If Defender keeps encountering errors:
   • Run Windows Update.
   • Update Defender definitions in the Windows Security app.
   • If needed, install the latest protection updates manually from the Microsoft Security Intelligence site.
8. If a Defender scan/remediation error appears, use the specific code guidance Example:
   • 0x8050800C: update definitions, run a full scan, restart the device, and try again.
   • 0x80508023: run the Microsoft Safety Scanner, then update security software and try again.
9. If the service still will not start, contact Microsoft Support and provide the exact error details The documented guidance for service start failures is to note any errors shown while starting the service and provide that information to support.

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References:

• Troubleshoot Windows Defender or Endpoint Protection client
• Troubleshoot Microsoft Defender Antivirus service startup problems
• Review event logs and error codes to troubleshoot issues with Microsoft Defender Antivirus
• Troubleshoot problems with detecting and removing malware