Error: (9012, 809) "An error is preventing the VPN from connecting. Reference error ID 809"

You may receive an error message when you try to connect to your VPN on your device. To know more on how to fix this issue, read Unable to connect to VPN on my device.

Norton Secure VPN/Secure VPN is no longer available for use within India as a result of governmental regulations requiring the logging and saving of user data, but you can still use your product/subscription when traveling outside of India.

Our Customer support would deliver the same message and cannot help/troubleshoot this experience if you reach our support.

Norton Secure VPN needs access to UDP ports 500 and 4500 to connect to the VPN servers.

You may see this error if the Internet traffic on these ports is blocked due to one of the following reasons:

A software firewall that is installed on the device
Your network router
Your Internet service provider blocking VPN traffic
Regional Internet access restrictions for VPN traffic that are enforced by the local authorities

To fix this problem, try connecting to a different VPN region or ensure that the Internet traffic on ports 500 and 4500 are not blocked on your device and your network.

Connect to a different VPN region

Connect to the "Auto-select" region or different VPN regions and try to use the respective app that fails to connect its service.

Example #1: If you are in USA and the VPN region is set to "Auto-Select", then, connect to USA or Canada region manually or vice-versa.

Example #2: If you are in Germany and the VPN region is already selected to "Germany", then connect to closest different region "Switzerland" or "France" or choose the "Auto-Select" region.

If you are still seeing this error, ensure that the Internet traffic on ports 500 and 4500 are not blocked by a firewall, router, or your Internet service provider. If you have a Norton device security product, make sure that it is configured to allow access to these ports.

Configure Norton Firewall settings

Open your Norton device security product.
In the My Norton window, next to Device Security, click Open.
In the Norton product main window, click Settings.
In the Settings window, click Firewall.
On the General Settings tab, in the Network Trust row, click Configure.
For your current network connection, change the Trust Level to Full Trust.

If the Trust Level is already set to Full Trust, go to the next steps.
Click Apply.
Exit the Device Security settings window and then turn on Secure VPN in the My Norton window.

If the issue persists, make sure that your Network router is allowed to access traffic on these ports.

Configure your network router

The following steps are provided only for your reference. These steps may vary based on your router. For detailed steps and more information, refer to the help documentation that is provided by the router manufacturer.

Connect your computer's LAN port to your gateway Router's Ethernet port.

You may also connect to the gateway router over Wi-Fi.
In your browser, go to the router configuration page by typing the IP address.

Most of the routers use one of the following default gateway addresses:
Type your user name and password and sign in to your gateway router.
Unless you changed it, your router uses the default password to sign in. If you don't remember the default password, refer to the help documentation that is provided by the router manufacturer.
Locate the Firewall settings.
Allow access on ports 500 and 4500.

If you do not find the option to allow access on ports 500 and 4500, you may also turn off the Firewall.
Save and exit the router settings.
Open your Norton device security product and turn on Secure VPN in the My Norton window.

Enable Auto-Connect

I have Norton 360 on Windows

Open your Norton device security product.
In the My Norton window, click the drop-down arrow next to Secure VPN and click Settings.
Move the slider to enable or disable Auto-Connect.

I have Norton Secure VPN app on Windows

Open Norton Secure VPN app on your desktop.
Click the Settings icon on top of the app.
In the Settings window, under General, move the Auto-connect VPN at Launch slider to enable or disable Auto-Connect.

If the problem persists, contact your Internet service provider to allow access to UDP ports 4500 and 500.