Disable USB Storage by Using the Group Policy Editor

To disable the USB storage by using the Group Policy Editor, open “Run.” Once
it’s open, type  gpedit.msc . On the left pane click on “Computer Configuration ->
Administrative Templates -> System -> Removable Storage Access.”

When you click on “Removable Storage Access,” new options will appear in
the right pane. Look for and click on the options that say “Removable Disks:
Deny execute access,” “Removable Disks: Deny read access,” and “Removable
Disks: Deny write access.”
Click on each one of them to configure them. After clicking on one, a window
with the name of the option should appear. To the left, there will be three
options: Not Configured, Enabled, and Disabled.

Click on “Enabled” to disable it. If you ever change your mind and want to
enable them again, choose the “Not Configured” or “Disabled” option.

How to Disable/Enable a USB Drive Using the Registry

If you want to try to disable a USB drive using the registry, type “run” in the
search box (though maybe first take a look at our guide on creating a backup
of your registry). When it appears, type  regedit , and the registry editor should
appear. Navigate to the following directory in Registry Editor:

ComputerHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetServicesUSBSTO
R

In the pane on the right, double-click “Start” to open the “Edit DWORD (32-bit)”
box.

The value data, by default, will be set to “3.” To disable USB storage, change
the “Value data” to “4” and click OK.
To (re)enable the USB storage, change the value data back to “3,” and the USB
storage will be enabled again.

Use the Device Manager to Disable USB Ports

Disabling the USB ports through the Device Manager is also pretty
straightforward. Right-click on the Start menu and click on “Device Manager.”
When the window appears, click on the Universal Serial Bus controller. (It’s the
last option on the list.) You can also choose the uninstall option for the USB
drive, and when someone inserts a USB, Windows won’t be able to find the
drivers.