Block an IP address

Go to Security > IP access, select Block an IP, enter the address, pick the agents, a reason and an expiry, then select Block IP. From the visitor's next message, those agents show the block message instead of a reply.

Before you start

Use this guide to stop a visitor who sends abusive, spam or fraudulent messages to the AI Shopping Assistant. A block belongs to one agent, so you choose which agents refuse the address. To let a visitor back in, see Unblock an IP address.

The IP access screens are part of the Webscale AI console. The AI Shopping Assistant app from the Shopify App Store doesn’t include them.

Steps

Block an IP address

1. Go to Security > IP access and select Block an IP.
2. Under IP address, enter the visitor's IPv4 or IPv6 address.
3. Under Agents, select each agent that should refuse the address. Each agent gets its own block.
4. Choose a Reason. It picks the standard message the visitor sees when you leave Message blank.
5. Choose an Expiry from 1 hour to 30 days. Never holds the block until you lift it.
6. Select Block IP. The address joins the Blocked IPs list and the agent refuses it from the visitor's next message.

1. Go to Security > IP access. The Blocked IPs tab opens.
2. Select Block an IP.
3. Under IP address, enter the visitor’s IPv4 or IPv6 address.
4. Under Agents, select each agent that should refuse the address. Picking several agents creates one block on each.
5. Choose a Reason: Manual, Abuse, Spam, Policy violation or Fraud.
6. Optional: under Message, write what the visitor sees instead of a reply. Leave it blank to use the standard message for the reason.
7. Choose an Expiry: 1 hour, 6 hours, 24 hours, 7 days or 30 days. The Never option holds the block until you lift it. The Custom option takes 1 to 43,200 minutes.
8. Select Block IP.

Check that it worked

The address appears in the Blocked IPs list. Select its row: the Status column shows Blocked on each agent you picked. The header reads Blocked on with the number of agents.

The block applies from the visitor’s next message. There is nothing to publish.

Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
“Enter an address to block.”	Enter one IPv4 or IPv6 address. Ranges such as 203.0.113.0/24 are not accepted
“Pick at least one agent.”	Open Agents and select at least one agent
“Enter a whole number between 1 and 43,200 minutes.”	A custom expiry runs from 1 minute to 30 days. Choose the Never option for a block with no end
An agent is missing from Agents	Only active agents that are not archived are listed
A message reads “Blocked on 1 of 2 agents” with an error	The block saved on some agents only. Open the address’s row and select Create block to add it on the agent that failed
The visitor still gets replies	Open the address’s row and check that Status shows Blocked on the agent the visitor uses. Blocks only take effect on public addresses: a private address such as 192.168.1.20 is saved but has no effect

Frequently asked questions

What does a blocked visitor see?

The message you wrote, or a standard message for the reason. For example, Abuse shows "This conversation has been ended because of abusive language." A timed block adds when the visitor can start a new chat. A block with no expiry asks the visitor to contact support.

Does a block end a chat that is already open?

Yes. The block applies from the visitor's next message, so an open chat stops replying straight away.

Can I block a range of addresses?

No. A block takes one IPv4 or IPv6 address. Block each address separately.

What happens when a block expires?

The visitor can chat again. The block stays in the list with the status Expired, so you keep a record of it.