How to Solve Competitors Are Scraping Your Product Prices And Descriptions Daily with Shopfence Secure Your Store

Setting up Shopfence on your Shopify store is simpler than most merchants expect. This step-by-step guide walks you through the entire process — from installation to going live — with every decision point explained clearly so you don’t have to guess.

Before You Start: What You Need

Before installing Shopfence, confirm you have:

• An active Shopify store (any plan)
• Admin access to your Shopify dashboard
• 5-15 minutes for initial setup
• A clear goal for what you want the app to do for your store

You don’t need a developer, coding knowledge, or any special preparation. Shopfence installs and configures entirely within your Shopify admin.

Step 1: Install Shopfence from the Shopify App Store

Open the Shopify App Store and search for Shopfence. Click the app listing, review the plan options, and click ‘Install’. You’ll be redirected to your Shopify admin to confirm the installation permissions. These permissions are standard for security apps and are required for the app to function correctly.

Once installed, the app appears in your Shopify admin under Apps in the left sidebar.

Step 2: Complete the Onboarding Setup

When you first open Shopfence, an onboarding checklist guides you through the essential configuration steps. Follow this checklist in order — it’s designed to get you to a functional setup as quickly as possible. Don’t skip steps, as each one builds on the previous.

The onboarding typically covers:

• Configuring country-based access control
• Configuring bot traffic blocking
• Configuring ip blacklisting/whitelisting
• Configuring password-protect store sections

Step 3: Configure Your Core Settings

After onboarding, dive into the main settings. The most important settings to configure first are the ones that directly affect how Shopfence works in your store. Take your time here — getting these right from the start prevents headaches later.

Key settings to focus on:

• Bot traffic blocking: Set this up to match your store’s specific needs.
• IP blacklisting/whitelisting: Set this up to match your store’s specific needs.
• Password-protect store sections: Set this up to match your store’s specific needs.
• VPN detection: Set this up to match your store’s specific needs.

Step 4: Customise the Customer-Facing Elements

If Shopfence has any elements that your customers see — buttons, messages, banners, or notifications — make sure they match your brand. Use your brand colours, your store’s tone of voice, and keep any text short and clear. A well-branded customer experience increases trust and reduces confusion.

Step 5: Test Before Going Live

Before enabling Shopfence fully, test it thoroughly. Use a test customer account, go through the journey as a customer would, and verify that everything works as expected. Check the mobile view specifically — most of your customers are on phones. Fix any issues before enabling it for all visitors.

Step 6: Enable and Monitor for the First Week

Once testing is complete, enable Shopfence fully. For the first week, check the app’s analytics daily to confirm it’s working as intended. Look for:

• Any errors or unexpected behaviour in the app dashboard
• Customer interactions with the new functionality
• Changes in your store’s key metrics
• Support tickets that might indicate customer confusion

Common Setup Mistakes to Avoid

• Skipping the mobile preview — always test on actual mobile devices
• Setting limits or rules that are too strict and frustrate customers
• Not enabling email notifications during testing — you want to experience the full customer journey
• Installing and forgetting — monitor for the first two weeks to catch any issues early

Pro Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Setup

Block countries where you don’t ship to reduce junk traffic Whitelist your own IP before testing any blocks Use competitor blocking to protect your pricing strategy

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I block specific countries?

Yes — block or allow any combination of countries with granular control.

Does it block bots and scrapers?

Yes — automatic bot detection blocks most scraper and bot traffic.

Can I whitelist my own team’s IPs?

Yes — create whitelist rules for your own IPs to always allow access.

Will legitimate customers in blocked regions see an error?

You can show a custom friendly message explaining the restriction.

Does it work in real time?

Yes — rules apply instantly without needing to refresh anything.