When you download a file with the Firefox web browser, it will by default (at least in Windows) purposely use your currently loaded anti-virus suite to scan the file once the download completes. This can prove to be quite annoying when you’re downloading things like tiny text files that obviously have no viruses in them.
If the auto-scanning of every download annoys you, you can turn it off easily by modifying a value in about:config.
1. Go to your address bar, type about:config and press Enter.
2. In the filter field, type scan. You do not have to press Enter as Firefox will start searching the moment you start typing.
3. Locate the entry browser.download.manager.scanWhenDone.
4. Double-click that entry to change from true to false.
Firefox will no longer scan downloads at that point.
The PCMech.com weekly newsletter has been running strong for over 8 years. Sign up to get tech news, updates and exclusive content - right in your inbox. Also get (several) free gifts.
