Prevent Files / Folders Access

75 Quality Score

Active Installs

14/30

At roughly 1,000 active installs the audience is small but the score is boosted because adoption is steady relative to the niche.

Update Freshness

25/25

Last updated in mid-2026 and marked as compatible with WordPress 7.0.1, which signals an actively maintained codebase despite the modest user base.

User Rating

14/15

A 92 out of 100 average from 35 reviewers is high, though the small sample size means a few unhappy users could swing the number quickly.

Support Health

8/15

Zero support threads opened and zero resolved is technically a 50 percent score, but it also means there is no public evidence of how the author handles real problems.

WP Compatibility

15/15

Requires PHP 5.6 and WordPress 4.7, and is tested against 7.0.1, so it will install on essentially any modern WordPress site.

Scores higher than 38% of indexed plugins

About

Prevent public access to WordPress files and folders. Protect downloads from public access. Role and user based folder access in premium plans only.

Active Installs 1k+

Rating ★★★★½ 4.6/5

Last Updated 2026-09-24 6:58pm GMT

Requires WordPress 4.7+

Tested Up To 7.1.2

Requires PHP 5.6+

Security History

2 known vulnerabilities, all patched

1 High 1 Medium

Most recent: August 6, 2025

View details ▸

What It Does

Prevent Files / Folders Access blocks public URLs from directly serving files in your WordPress media library, then re-serves them only to users who meet configured role or user-list conditions. In practice, it acts as a gatekeeper for downloads and uploads, so a shared link to a PDF, image, or ZIP will not work for anonymous visitors. It is focused on file-level protection rather than page or post restriction.

Who It's For

This plugin fits small sites that sell or distribute a handful of digital files and need to stop link-sharing without standing up a full membership system. It is also useful for internal sites, client portals, or membership clubs where access is granted by WordPress role or a specific list of usernames. It is less suited to large catalogues with complex per-product permissions.

Who Should Skip It

If you need to restrict entire pages, posts, or custom post types, or if you need drip content, paywalls, or subscription billing, this plugin is the wrong tool and you will be happier with a dedicated membership plugin. Sites that simply want to stop hotlinking of images or hide the wp-content path from search engines do not need this either; a hotlink-protection rule in .htaccess or a security plugin will do that for free.

The Bottom Line

Prevent Files / Folders Access does a narrow job and does it quietly well, with strong maintenance signals and a high user rating, but the lack of any support history is a real gap. The 1,000-install ceiling tells you it has not been battle-tested the way User Registration or Paid Member Subscriptions have. Recommended for simple file-gating needs, with the caveat that you should not expect responsive public support.

Pick this if you need full registration forms, profile management, and content restriction tied to memberships, not just file gating.

Paid Membership Subscriptions – Effortless Memberships, Recurring Payments & Content Restriction 86/100

Choose this when the goal is recurring revenue, subscription billing, and tiered access rather than protecting individual files.

Content Control – The Ultimate Content Restriction Plugin! 83/100

Use this for granular shortcode and block-level content restrictions, especially inside posts and pages.

s2Member – Excellent for All Kinds of Memberships, Content Restriction Paywalls & Member Access Subscriptions 77/100

Pick this for a long-standing membership framework with paywalls, drip content, and built-in file access controls.

Page and Post Restriction 75/100

Use this if your real need is restricting entire pages or posts by role, with no payment or file delivery involved.