diff --git a/.github/workflows/tests.yml b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
index 9bcbf41d1f..67172b19bc 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/tests.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
@@ -524,6 +524,7 @@ jobs:
                   $env:PGPASSWORD = 'root'
                   psql -c 'DROP DATABASE IF EXISTS phpbb_tests;' -U postgres
                   psql -c 'create database phpbb_tests;' -U postgres
+                  Add-MpPreference -ExclusionPath "${env:PGDATA}" # Exclude PGDATA directory from Windows Defender
             - name: Run unit tests
               run: |
                   phpBB/vendor/bin/phpunit --configuration .github/phpunit-psql-windows-github.xml --verbose --stop-on-error