New 'Lockdown' Firewall App Lets You Block Any Connection to Any Domain for Privacy Protection - MacRumors
Skip to Content

New 'Lockdown' Firewall App Lets You Block Any Connection to Any Domain for Privacy Protection

by

Lockdown, a new app launching today, is designed to be an open source firewall, letting users block any connection to any domain, including those that use ad tracking services and analytics platforms to monitor device usage.

Lockdown is free to download and use, and because it operates on device, it collects no user data. Lockdown uses Apple's VPN setup to function, though it is not a VPN and will not obscure your own IP address.

lockdownapp
Using Lockdown, you can block any domain, including those from companies like Facebook, and the app comes with a pre-set list of recommended domains to block to prevent tracking. Facebook tracking and other analytics tracking options from companies like Google, Mixpanel, and more are automatically blocked upon installing the app, and you can add your own custom lists too.

In addition to preventing unwanted tracking, the Lockdown app promises faster browsing speeds because unwanted connections are blocked, saving loading time.

Lockdown comes from the team behind Duet Display, and in the future, the app will offer a paid option that includes VPN functionality. Lockdown's developers are hoping that the launch of the app will incentivize developers to use more privacy-focused analytics frameworks and app discovery methods that rely less on trackers from major companies like Google and Facebook.

Lockdown can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Top Rated Comments

92 months ago
I blocked The Facebook beta and Email Opens and now both appear as being Blocked and Unblocked!

Will fix this in the next version! Sorry about that, always a couple bugs on launch day :)
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
92 months ago
I use Firefox Focus to block trackers.
Not the same thing. Firefox cannot block analytics and tracking SDKs that are embedded in many apps. This can.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
92 months ago
If I chose to use this app without the paid VPN service, does this mean my internet traffic (my information) won't be monitored at all by the developer?

I mean we all know we trade in our privacy when we pass our connection through a VPN and the private company can monitor our connection. I'd like to know if my connection (and the data packages of each app) is going to be monitored by any means, like they are when passing through a VPN, or the firewall works totally on device.

Thank you.
We will never monitor or sell your Internet traffic (Lockdown is an on-device firewall, so the data never leaves your device). Since the free version has no server cost or marginal cost per user, we believe that part of the product should be free.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jimmy James Avatar
92 months ago
This is probably the most important news I’ll read today.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thisisnotmyname Avatar
92 months ago
Can you run it in tandem with another VPN app?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
92 months ago
I'm just looking for the big ones, like google ads etc.
Doesn't appear to be an easy way to import lists into this app.
[doublepost=1563986280][/doublepost]
Just FYI:
1. There's no way to disable metrics once they're enabled. :(
2. There's no easy way to import big lists of domains to block

Those 2 features would be killer!
Both of these coming!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple Working on All-New Operating System

Wednesday July 29, 2026 11:39 am PDT by
Apple is developing an all-new operating system that is essentially a mix of tvOS, watchOS, and iOS, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In a report this week, he said the operating system will feature a grid of icons, widgets, and apps, along with customizable clock faces. The new software platform is intended for Apple's long-rumored smart home hub. With built-in facial recognition,...
imac video apple feature

Apple Made Its Second-Biggest Acquisition Ever This Year

Wednesday July 29, 2026 12:03 pm PDT by
Apple this year acquired Israeli startup Q.ai for close to $2 billion, according to the Financial Times. That would make this Apple's second-biggest acquisition ever, after it paid $3 billion for the popular headphone maker Beats in 2014. This is also the largest known Apple acquisition since the company purchased Intel's smartphone modem business and patents for $1 billion in 2019. Q.ai...
Apple Intelligence Comes Under Fire Feature

Apple Will 'Watch Everything Burn' When AI Bubble Bursts - Ed Zitron

Monday July 27, 2026 7:11 am PDT by
Memory prices have doubled, Macs and iPads have gone up, and iPhones are expected to follow. Ed Zitron – who writes the Where's Your Ed At newsletter, hosts the Better Offline podcast, and has been described by Politico as the AI boom's most "acerbic gadfly" – has spent years arguing the buildout driving those costs will never pay for itself. We asked him what happens to Apple if he's...