Repeated keychain prompt appears when trying to turn on VPN on Mac using Norton 360

To resolve Norton VPN configuration issues on Mac, read: Nothing happens after you click “Continue” while trying to configure VPN on Norton Device Security for Mac.

You can add VPN configurations on your Mac to prevent your online activities from being tracked by third-party trackers, including ISPs, or the websites that you visit, giving you private internet access.

This feature is available only for users subscribed to Norton 360 plans that include Norton VPN. This feature is not available in all countries.

What is the keychain password and how do I reset my keychain password?

When adding the VPN profile, you will see the keychain access notification from Apple to receive the required authorization data for the VPN connection. You need to provide your Mac login account password to allow the keychain access for NEIKEv2Provider. In some cases, your keychain password may be different from your Mac login account password. If you do not remember the keychain password for your Mac, refer the Apple Support article.

What is NEIKEv2Provider and why does Norton need my keychain password?

The NEIKEv2Provider is a system service that uses the built-in VPN protocol for Macs (IKEv2) to create secure VPN connections. Norton uses this service when attempting to connect to the VPN.

In order to authorize your Mac when connecting to the VPN, NEIKEv2Provider needs to access the Norton key in your keychain. This requires permission from the user and is why Norton requests that the user enters their keychain password. Entering your password only grants permission to the Norton key in your keychain. It does not grant access to your full keychain. The Norton key is used to authenticate your connection when connecting to the VPN.

If NEIKEv2Provider cannot access the Norton key in your keychain, it won't be able to successfully connect to the VPN.

Resolve repeated keychain prompts

The below steps are applicable only after you install or update your Norton device security product to the latest version on macOS Mojave 10.14.x or later.

  1. Open your Norton device security product on Mac.

  2. In the My Norton window, next to Norton VPN, click Turn On.

  3. Read the on-screen instructions and click Continue.

  4. If prompted, click Allow to create a new VPN profile on your Mac.

  5. Type your Mac administrator account password and click Always Allow to sign into your VPN profile so that you will not receive the keychain access alert again.

    You may see the keychain alert again if you have clicked the Allow option in the first alert notification. In that case, make sure that you click the Always Allow option in the second keychain alert so that you will not receive the keychain alert again when you access the VPN option in the future.

If the problem persists, uninstall and reinstall Norton, and then try to add the VPN configuration again.

Uninstall Norton

  1. On your Mac, click the Finder icon in the dock, and then click Applications in the left pane under Favorites section.

  2. Find the Norton application icon, and drag it to the Trash or Bin.

  3. Click Continue.

  4. When prompted, type your administrator account password, and then click OK.

  5. In the window that appears, click Uninstall.

  6. When prompted, type your administrator account password, and then click Install Helper.

  7. Click Restart Now.

Download Norton device security

Before you download the latest installer setup file, make sure that you delete all the older installer setup files available in the Downloads folder.

  1. Sign in to your account.

  2. Type in your email address and password for Norton, and click Sign In.

  3. In the dashboard page, click Download.
    If you want to install a different subscribed product, go to My Subscriptions. In the My Subscriptions tab, select the Norton product with an active subscription and click Download.

  4. In the Get Started page, click Agree and Download.

  5. When the download finishes, double-click the file that you downloaded to launch the Norton installer.

  6. Before you install Norton, click Norton License Agreement to read the product license agreement.

  7. Depending on your operating system, select one of the following:

Install Norton device security on macOS 10.15.x (Catalina) or later

  1. Click Install.

  2. In some cases, Norton provides you an alert to join the Norton Community Watch that collects information about potential security risks from your computer and sends the information to Norton for analysis. Do any one of the following:

    • Click Join Now to enable the Norton Community Watch on your Norton product.

    • Click Maybe Later to join the Norton Community Watch later.

    You can click Learn More to know more about Norton Community Watch.

  3. When prompted, type your Mac administrator user account password, and then click Install Helper.

  4. Click Restart.

  5. After you restart your Mac, in the Norton installation window, click Open Preferences.

  6. If you see the System Extension Blocked alert, click Open Security Preferences.

  7. In the Security & Privacy window, click the lock icon at the bottom.

  8. When prompted, type your administrator account password, and then click Unlock.

  9. Click Allow corresponding to the Norton message, navigate back to the Norton installation window, and then click Continue.

    If you do not see the Allow button, then close and reopen the Security & Privacy window to view the Allow button.

    Allow System Extensions

  10. In the Norton installation window, click Continue, and then click Allow to allow Norton to monitor all the network activities and block malicious websites from accessing your Mac.

    Allow Network Monitoring

  11. In the Norton installation window, click Open Preferences to allow Norton to access your disk for better protection.

  12. In the Security & Privacy window, ensure that the Norton System Extension option is enabled. Navigate back to the Norton installation window and click Complete.

    Allow Full Disk Access

Install Norton device security on macOS High Sierra 10.13.x to macOS Mojave 10.14.x

  1. Click Agree & Install.

  2. In some cases, Norton provides you an alert to join the Norton Community Watch that collects information about potential security risks from your computer and sends the information to Norton for analysis. Do any one of the following:

    • Click Join Now to enable the Norton Community Watch on your Norton product.

    • Click Maybe Later to join the Norton Community Watch later.

    You can click Learn More to know more about Norton Community Watch.

  3. When prompted, type your Mac administrator user account password, and then click Install Helper.

  4. In the Norton installation window, click Open Now or Click here.

  5. Do any one of the following:

    • Click Allow corresponding to the Symantec message.

    • If you have multiple software or vendor installed on your Mac that requires your authorization, then you see Some system software was blocked from loading message instead of Symantec message. In that case, click Allow, select Symantec in the list, and then click OK.

    If you do not see the Allow button, then close and reopen the Security & Privacy window to view the Allow button.

  6. In the Norton Security installation window. click Continue.

  7. Click Restart to complete the installation process.

Install Norton device security on Mac OS X 10.10.x (Yosemite) to OS X 10.12.x (Sierra)

  1. Click Agree & Install.

  2. In some cases, your Norton product provides you an alert to join the Norton Community Watch that collects information about potential security risks from your computer and sends the information to Norton for analysis. Do any one of the following:

    • Click Join Now to enable the Norton Community Watch on your Norton product.

    • Click Maybe Later to join the Norton Community Watch later.

    You can click Learn More to know more about Norton Community Watch.

  3. When prompted, type your Mac administrator user account password, and then click Install Helper.

  4. When the installation completes, click Restart. Your product installation completes after you restart your Mac.

Add VPN configuration

  1. Open your Norton device security product on Mac.

  2. In the My Norton window, next to Norton VPN, click Turn On.

  3. Read the on-screen instructions and click Continue.

  4. If prompted, click Allow to create a new VPN profile on your Mac.

  5. Type your Mac administrator account password and click Always Allow to sign into your VPN profile so that you will not receive the keychain access alert again.

    You may see the keychain alert again if you have clicked the Allow option in the first alert notification. In that case, make sure that you click the Always Allow option in the second keychain alert so that you will not receive the keychain alert again when you access the VPN option in the future.

If you have multiple user accounts created for your Mac, you may encounter a problem with Norton VPN option missing from your My Norton dashboard. To fix this problem, make sure that you login into your Mac with the same user account on which you have activated your Norton product that includes Norton VPN. For more information, see Fix problem with Norton VPN option missing from the My Norton dashboard on Mac.

Disclaimer: We are not responsible for the reliability of any data, opinions, advice, or statements made on third-party sites. We provide these links merely as a convenience. The inclusion of such links does not imply that we endorse, recommend, or accept any responsibility for the content of such sites.

Video: Avoid repeated keychain access alerts whenever you turn on VPN on Mac


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DOCID: v138741680
Operating System: Mac
Last modified: 12/07/2024