Is League of Legends Avast False Positive an Error? [Fixed]

League of Legends, a popular team-based strategy game developed by Riot Games, is facing an issue where Avast antivirus software blocks the game from running. As a result, it prevents players from accessing the game and participating in matches.

This happens as the game’s behavior either resembles malware, contains similar code, or is signed with a compromised certificate. But often, it’s just a false positive flag from Avast, not a threat. 

So, in this article, I’ll discuss the causes of the League of Legends Avast false positive issue and provide some tips to quickly fix this problem.

Why is Avast Blocking League of Legends? — 6 Potential Causes

False positives can occur for various reasons, such as outdated or poorly configured software. It is also possible that the League of Legends installation has been compromised by malware, causing Avast to block it as a precautionary measure.

Some possible causes for Avast blocking League of Legends are as follows:

1. Outdated Software

Older versions of Avast usually cannot accurately identify newer threats and may flag benign files as malware. This results in Avast blocking the League of Legends game.

2. Incorrectly Configured Software

Incorrect Avast software configuration may flag specific files or programs as threats, even benign ones, causing Avast to block League of Legends. For example, if Avast’s threat detection sensitivity is set too high, it may flag regular files or programs as threats.

3. Interference From Other Security Software

Multiple security programs installed on your computer may conflict with each other and cause problems such as false detections or blocked programs. In the case of League of Legends, if another security program is blocking it from running, Avast may also block it due to this interference.

4. Corrupted Files

Sometimes, one or more game files on your system become corrupt or damaged. This causes problems with programs that rely on these files. Since League of Legends also runs with the help of multiple game files, Avast may flag it as a threat and block them if they become corrupted or damaged.

5. Legitimate Software Flagged as Malware

Some legitimate programs may perform malware-like actions, such as modifying system settings or installing other software without user consent. Moreover, they may also contain code similar to malware.

This happens because these softwares are often developed using identical programming techniques or other commonly shared code libraries. In such cases, Avast may mistakenly flag a legitimate program as malware due to their similarities.

6. Malware Disguised as Legitimate Software

Hackers may attempt to disguise malware as a legitimate program to bypass security software. So, as a precaution, Avast antivirus recognizes such programs as a threat and doesn’t allow them to run on your system without a full virus scan.

5 Ways to Unblock League of Legends From Avast Antivirus

Having a computer free of malware and other threats before installing any new software may also help fix the false positive detection with League of Legends.

But if that’s not the case, you can try some of the following 5 quick methods to fix this issue:

1. Restart your PC

Restarting your PC may fix League of Legends blocking by Avast if caused by a temporary glitch or conflict with other programs. To restart your PC, follow these steps:

1. Close all open programs and windows.
2. Click the Start button in the bottom left corner of the screen.

3. Tap the Power button.

4. Select Restart from the menu.

5. Your PC will begin the restart process. It will shut down and start up again.

Once the restart process is complete, try relaunching League of Legends to see if the issue has been resolved.

2. Run Avast With Administrator Privileges

Sometimes, running Avast with admin privileges can fix the false positive issue with League of Legends. To run Avast with administrator privileges, follow these steps:

1. Type avast in your computer’s search box.

2. Tap Run as administrator in the menu on the right-hand side.

3. Click Yes on the UAC prompt to allow Avast to run with administrator privileges.
4. Avast will launch with the necessary licenses to make changes to your system and access specific resources.

Be cautious when you use any program with administrator privileges, as it can cause system changes without user consent. So, stick to trusted programs only to avoid unwanted issues or problems with your system files.

3. Add the Game to Avast’s Exclusions List

You can add League of Legends to Avast’s exclusions list to let the game run smoothly on your PC. Here’s how you can add League of Legends to Avast’s exclusions list:

1. Open Avast Antivirus and click Menu in the top right corner.

2. Select Settings from the menu list.

3. Tap General in the left menu on the next window.

4. Click Exceptions in the General section.

5. Tap the Add Exception button under the Exceptions summary.

6. A pop-up will appear where you can add the file path, folder path, or website domain to exclude.

7. You can tap the Browse button to navigate the League of Legends folder on your PC. Or you can copy and paste this path to add LOL as an exception: C:\Riot Games\League of Legends and tap the Add Exception button.

8. The game will appear in the list after you click Add Exception.

9. Close the Avast settings and try launching League of Legends to see if the issue has been resolved.

Remember that adding an exclusion to Avast’s protection may leave your system vulnerable to threats that the software would usually block. So, exclude only those programs that you trust won’t harm your system.

4. Restore the File From Quarantine

Some files of League of Legends may have already been moved to the virus chest before you even attempt to run the game. So, you’ll need to restore them from the Quarantine section of the Avast. To do that, follow these steps:

1. Open Avast Antivirus and select the Protection option in the left menu.

2. In the right menu, click Quarantine to access the list of quarantined files.

3. Locate the file you want to restore from the list and select it by tapping its name.

4. Some options will appear on the screen’s bottom when you select the file. Click the three dots next to the Delete All button.

5. Select the Restore and add exception option from the menu to restore the file and add it to Avast’s exclusions list.

6. Click Yes on the prompt that appears, and the file will be restored to its original location and no longer be flagged as a threat by Avast.

But keep in mind that if these files were quarantined due to a false positive, they could be restored without any issue. Otherwise, this action can compromise your system’s security if any of these files have legitimate threats to your system.

5. Update Avast Virus Definitions

Turn on Avast’s regular updates to download and install the latest information about the virus definitions files on your PC. It will let you keep your system safe from actual threats and may also prevent Avast from blocking League of Legends. So, to update the definitions in Avast Antivirus, follow these steps:

1. Open Avast Antivirus and click Menu in the top right corner.

2. Select Settings from the list.

3. The General option is selected by default. If it’s not, click General.

4. In the right menu, select Update.

5. In the right menu, you’ll see Virus definitions are up to date. You can tap the Check for Updates button to run the update process.

6. Avast will download and install the latest virus definitions if any updates are available. This can take a few minutes to complete.

Is It Safe to Add League of Legends to Avast’s Exception List?

But it is important to note that excluding a program from Avast’s protection may leave your system vulnerable to threats. So, only add exceptions for the programs you trust and are confident won’t harm your PC.

Should I Disable Avast When Playing League of Legends?

Many users consider disabling the antivirus because Avast blocks the League of Legends. But instead of disabling Avast, you can try adding League of Legends to the exclusions list in Avast’s settings. This will allow the game to run without being blocked by the software while still protecting your system against other threats.

However, you should optimize your gaming system if you experience performance issues while running Avast and League of Legends simultaneously. Or you can also try adjusting the software settings to reduce the impact on system resources when playing the game.

Frequently Asked Questions