Microsoft Defender Threat Service Has Stopped issue in Windows 10

Windows Defender is a built-in firewall and threat protection system that can be used to mitigate issues with viruses and performance in the system. However, many users have reported seeing the following issue with the Defender Service

Threat Service Has Stopped, Restart It Now.

When you try to further dig into the issue, you see a prompt saying “Unexpected error. Sorry, we ran into a problem. Please try again.”

The most common reason for this issue to occur is the third-party anti-virus in the system. These antivirus softwares have a setting that disables the Windows Defender. In this article, let us look at different ways to fix the “Microsoft Defender Threat Service Has Stopped” issue in detail.

Note: Restarting the PC sometimes Fixes the error. Try it.

Fix 1: Modify the Registry Key

Step 1: Open the Run window by pressing the buttons Windows+r

Step 2: Type regedit and press OK



 

 

Regedit In Run

 

 

NOTE: Registry editing can have an adverse effect on the system even with the slightest mistake. It is advised to take the backup of the registry before proceeding. To take a backup, In the Registry Editor–> Go to File –> Export –> Save your Backup file.

Step 3: In the User Account Control window that pops up asking for permission, click on Yes

Step 4: In the Editor window, go to the following location,

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows Defender

 

 

registry location

 

 

Step 5: In the right-hand side pane, check if the registry key DisableAntiSpyware exists.

If it exists . simply double click on it and set its value data to 0. If it does not exists, follow the steps given below.

Step 11: When the DisableAntiSpyware is not present yet the Issue with Windows Defender service is seen, one can try creating the key and setting the key value to 0.

1. Right-clicking anywhere  –> New –> DWORD (32-bit) Value

 

 

new-key

 

 

2. Name the newly created key as DisableAntiSpyware

 

 

DIsableAntiSpyware

 

 

3. Double-click on DisableAntiSpyware. In the Edit DWORD window, set the value to 0.

 

 

Edit DWORD window

 

 

Check if this helps to fix the issue.

 

Fix 2: Uninstall the third-party Antivirus Software

As stated above, most antivirus software disables Windows Defender Security. Make sure that there are no third-party apps installed and then check if the issue still exists.

Fix 3: Restart certain services

Step 1: Open Run Dialog (Windows+r)

Step 2: Type services.msc and hit OK

 

servicesdotmsc

 

 



Step 3: In the Services window, scroll down to find  Security Center.

Step 4: Right-click on it and choose Restart

 

 

Restart the service

 

If its not running, just double click on it and start the service. Also make sure the startup type is set to automatic (delayed start).

Security Sentre Service Min

Step 5: Similarly, locate Windows Defender Antivirus Service. Then right-click and choose Start.

If this doesn’t help, try the next fix.

That’s All

We hope this article helps to resolve the issue. Kindly comment and let us know which of the above fixes helped.

Thank you for Reading. Please stay tuned for more tips and tricks.