diff --git a/scripts/browse.py b/scripts/browse.py
index c15214e7..09f376a7 100644
--- a/scripts/browse.py
+++ b/scripts/browse.py
@@ -5,12 +5,21 @@ from llm_utils import create_chat_completion
 
 cfg = Config()
 
+# Define and check for local file address prefixes
+def check_local_file_access(url):
+    local_prefixes = ['file:///', 'file://localhost', 'http://localhost', 'https://localhost']
+    return any(url.startswith(prefix) for prefix in local_prefixes)
+
 def scrape_text(url):
     """Scrape text from a webpage"""
     # Most basic check if the URL is valid:
     if not url.startswith('http'):
         return "Error: Invalid URL"
     
+    # Restrict access to local files
+    if check_local_file_access(url):
+        return "Error: Access to local files is restricted"
+    
     try:
         response = requests.get(url, headers=cfg.user_agent_header)
     except requests.exceptions.RequestException as e:
@@ -126,4 +135,4 @@ def summarize_text(text, question):
         max_tokens=300,
     )
 
-    return final_summary
\ No newline at end of file
+    return final_summary