How can I turn off internet access for Mac apps

I'm trying to disable the internet for some apps, specifically Origin because it always requires an update before I can play a game. I tried turning off internet access in the Firewall settings for Security.

I turned off Origin and chrome but both still have internet access. Restarting the computer did not do anything either. I'm still able to access internet sites on Chrome.

Both chrome and Origin are not installed via the App Store.

I'm running MacOS Catalina 10.15.6 and am always using the wifi to connect to the internet. I would like to keep my internet for the rest of the computer.

Solution 1:

The firewall settings you have tried to configure apply to incoming connections only - this is why it is not working for you.

Basically a program on your computer can initiate a connection to an external computer, which is known as an "outgoing connection".

Similarly a program on an external computer can initiate a connection to a program on your computer, which is known as an "incoming connection".

In both cases, data can flow both ways as soon as the connection is established. That is a program can initiate an "outgoing connection", and receive lots of data on that "outgoing" connection.

In order to do what you want, you'll want to install a program such as Little Snitch, which can block network connections from programs such as Origin.