diff --git a/modules/microvm-defaults.nix b/modules/microvm-defaults.nix
index 367c9552..20d5a794 100644
--- a/modules/microvm-defaults.nix
+++ b/modules/microvm-defaults.nix
@@ -27,9 +27,6 @@
 
   hardware.enableRedistributableFirmware = false;
 
-  # required that sysctl contains net.netfilter.nf_conntrack_max on boot
-  networking.firewall.autoLoadConntrackHelpers = true;
-
   # nix store is mounted read only
   nix.gc.automatic = false;