Access control lets you decide exactly who can reach your storefront based on device type, country of origin, and whether the visitor is using a VPN or proxy. Settings are per-store and take effect immediately after saving. You need the Settings permission to change these options.
Opening access control
Go to Settings and click Access control. A panel opens with all controls on a single screen.
Devices
The Devices multi-select field lets you choose which device types are permitted to view your store. The four available options are:
- Desktop
- Mobile
- Tablet
- Television
You must select at least one device. If all four are selected, the restriction is cleared and all devices are allowed. Visitors arriving on a device type that is not selected will be blocked from seeing your store entirely.
VPN and proxy blocking
The VPNs or proxies blocked toggle, when enabled, prevents visitors from accessing your store through a VPN or proxy service. The note on screen explains: "Once VPNs or proxies are blocked, visitors from the selected countries will be prevented from accessing the store through these methods." This is particularly useful for stores that rely on cash-on-delivery and want to prevent fraudulent orders placed from hidden locations.
Restriction method
The Restriction Method field controls how the country list is applied. There are three options:
- None: Allow traffic from all countries: No country-based filtering. This is the default. The Countries field is ignored.
- Blacklist: Allow traffic from all countries except the selected ones: Every country is permitted except the ones you add to the Countries list.
- Whitelist: Allow traffic only from selected countries: Only visitors whose detected country appears in the Countries list can access the store. Everyone else is blocked.
If you select None or leave the Countries list empty, no country filtering is applied regardless of the method chosen.
Countries
The Countries searchable multi-select lets you pick which countries the restriction method applies to. Countries are shown with their flag and name. A Selected Countries table below the selector shows which countries are currently saved. Adding or removing a country takes effect only when you click Save.
The page also shows two informational notes: blocking countries where you do not ship is highlighted as an effective way to cut false orders when using cash on delivery.
Saving
Click Save. A success message confirms the update. If you submit an invalid device value or an unrecognised country, an inline error is shown and no changes are saved.
What to check if legitimate visitors are blocked
- Confirm the Restriction Method is set to the correct mode. Whitelist blocks everyone not on the list; blacklist blocks only listed countries.
- Check that the customer's country is or is not in the Countries list as expected.
- If a customer reports being blocked despite being in the correct country, they may be connecting through a VPN. Enable VPNs or proxies blocked if you want to prevent this, or ask the customer to disconnect from any VPN.
- Confirm the customer's device type is included in the Devices selection.