New Update F-Secure beta version updates

Jonny Quest said:
Yep, still not sure. Just one of those things, a glitch? It's good that you brought it up, so members can confirm it on their end if they run the online scanner.

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Yap. All good now. Thanks for checking too.

Was just surprised with that unusual behavior from Fsec. On demand-2nd opinion scanners should run only when users demand them and not on auto start as it's waste of resource.
 
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Release 26.1 beta 1 (6.9.376)​

New features:

  • There’s now smart tasks informing about verifying ID Monitoring related email addresses.
  • Network protection driver has been updated to new framework. Performance is improved in certain rare scenarios. This affects Browsing Protection, Banking Protection and Family Protection.
Bug fixes:

  • Show ID Monitoring related connection failure dialog when needed. (PBL-15577)
  • Remove ID Monitoring local cache on product uninstall. (PBL-15805)
Known issues:

  • Browsing protection may stop working when exiting a banking protection session. Rebooting the affected device resolves the issue (PBL-15756)


Note: v25.12 was skipped as there was no release on December.
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Antimalware18 said:
Thats's a Issue i've only ever had in Avira, is it possible that F-Secure is Using Avira's SDK's the issue could carry over? :emoji_thinking:
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That could be, not sure though. But, it looks like they realized the issue and have created a fix for it. Now, the opposite may be true, if it's an Avira issue as well, will it be fixed in that app? How well is Gen Digital supporting, maintaining Avira? Or, does a fix in the Avira SDK apply, be applied "across the board" to both F-Secure and Avira?
 
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Nothing of any real significance to report on the last couple of beta releases, 26.2.

Release 26.2 beta 2 (7.0.307)​

Bug fixes:

  • Cookie Popup Blocker is now bound to correct subscription feature (PBL-16049)

Release 26.2 beta 3 (7.0.363)​

Bug fixes:

  • USB storage device scan notifications shown unexpectedly at system startup (PBL-15868)
  • Broken IDM UI in case of network errors (PBL-16084)
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Release 26.3 beta 1 (7.1.147)​

Improvements:
  • This release was built with an updated development toolchain (Visual Studio 2026), bringing internal improvements to code quality and security.
Bug fixes:
  • Tasks view had unlocalized text (PBL-16166)
  • Fixed rare crash when resizing app in Vault view (PBL-16065)
  • Network error message popup now looks and behaves to same way across UI (PBL-15752)
Browsing Protection browser extension fixes (not included inside beta 1, but gets released via webstores around same time for Chrome and Edge)
  • Block page texts are now identical across platforms (PBL-16056)
  • Block page sizing logic updated so that header and footer are always shown and page fits 1920x1080 screen with 150% scaling. (PBL-16056)
  • Ad Blocker’s static domain list updated (PBL-16101)
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And in my wondering about Visual Studio 2026, and how that could improve security, was give this reply by Gemini Plus.
Updating a development toolchain to a newer version like Visual Studio 2026 improves security primarily through advanced compiler-level protections, more rigorous code analysis, and the adoption of modern security standards.

Here is a breakdown of how these updates translate into better security for the end-user:

1. Enhanced Security Mitigations​

Modern compilers include built-in "mitigations" that make it significantly harder for attackers to exploit software vulnerabilities even if a bug exists. A newer toolchain often introduces or improves:

  • Control Flow Guard (CFG) & Shadow Stacks: These prevent "hijacking" the program's execution flow. They ensure that the software only jumps to legitimate locations, blocking techniques used in many memory-corruption exploits (like Return-Oriented Programming or ROP).
  • Address Space Layout Randomization (ASLR) Improvements: Newer toolchains can generate code that utilizes high-entropy ASLR, making it even more difficult for malware to predict where specific data is stored in memory.
  • Advanced Stack Protection: Improved "stack canaries" and buffer overflow checks detect when a program’s memory is being tampered with and shut the process down before an exploit can succeed.

2. Improved Static Analysis​

Newer versions of Visual Studio come with updated static analysis engines (such as C++ Core Check). These tools scan the source code during the "build" phase to find security flaws that a human developer might miss, such as:

  • Potential buffer overflows.
  • Uninitialized memory usage.
  • Integer overflows.
  • Use-after-free vulnerabilities. By catching these bugs during development, they are fixed before the software ever reaches your computer.

3. Safer Libraries and Modern Standards​

A new toolchain includes updated versions of the C++ Standard Library (STL) and other system libraries. These updates often replace older, "unsafe" functions (which are prone to errors) with modern, safer alternatives that include automatic bounds checking and better memory management.

4. Hardware-Level Security Support​

Newer compilers are better equipped to leverage modern CPU security features. For example, they can generate instructions that take advantage of Intel’s Control-flow Enforcement Technology (CET) or ARM’s Memory Tagging Extension (MTE), providing a hardware-backed layer of defense that older toolchains simply cannot produce.

5. Stricter Compiler Warnings​

Each major update to a compiler typically introduces new warnings for "risky" code patterns. What might have been considered "legal" but dangerous code in an older version of Visual Studio will often trigger a warning or error in the 2026 version. This forces developers to resolve ambiguous or fragile code, leading to a more stable and secure final product.

In the context of security software, these "under-the-hood" improvements are vital because the antivirus itself is a high-value target for attackers. Strengthening the foundation of the code ensures that the protection layer remains resilient against sophisticated threats.
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Szellem said:
So, are you happy with it? Is there any system strain or issues with the product? Does it interfere with anything on your computer?
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That beta, v26.3 hasn't been publicly released yet. They usually run through about a 6 week period of beta updates and testing, before being publicly released. I'm not a beta tester, so for now, I can't say :)
 
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Jonny Quest said:
That beta, v26.3 hasn't been publicly released yet. They usually run through about a 6 week period of beta updates and testing, before being publicly released. I'm not a beta tester, so for now, I can't say :)
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I know it's a beta version. I read that. I'm just generally curious: since you started using F-Secure, have you had any problems with it?
 
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Szellem said:
I know it's a beta version. I read that. I'm just generally curious: since you started using F-Secure, have you had any problems with it?
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No problem, I just thought I'd mention it in case you thought I was running it, beta :)

What I posted here is pretty much my thoughts regarding it, and in using F-Secure. My web surfing is pretty basic and benign, and I'm not downloading, testing and running multiple apps weekly. On one laptop I have about 10 apps installed (including browsers), and on the other, 9. I'm not a gamer, so I can't give you any performance feedback, without using a 3rd party app to rate it. Since I'm not a power user, it's been fine and all I need.

I've been using it on and off for about 4 years consistently, on at least one or two devices (at one time I had 5 devices) without any real problems except the occasional slow loading app (as mentioned in the link). I have gone from Total to using Internet Security, didn't need the VPN or ID Monitoring.
 
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Jonny Quest said:
No problem, I just thought I'd mention it in case you thought I was running it, beta :)

What I posted here is pretty much my thoughts regarding it, and in using F-Secure. My web surfing is pretty basic and benign, and I'm not downloading, testing and running multiple apps weekly. On one laptop I have about 10 apps installed (including browsers), and on the other, 9. I'm not a gamer, so I can't give you any performance feedback, without using a 3rd party app to rate it. Since I'm not a power user, it's been fine and all I need.

I've been using it on and off for about 4 years consistently, on at least one or two devices (at one time I had 5 devices) without any real problems except the occasional slow loading app (as mentioned in the link). I have gone from Total to using Internet Security, didn't need the VPN or ID Monitoring.
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Thanks for your reply. I’m not a power user either, but unfortunately I’m sensitive to slowdowns. I guess I’m just getting old. :) But seriously, it always annoys me when third-party software slows things down. And since I play COD, it’s also important that it doesn’t cause any issues or mess with the game files.
 
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A nice little beta update. I hope all my friends here are doing well :) I'm not ignoring you all or this forum, just doing some other things with my time :)

Release 26.4 beta 1 (7.2.174)​

Improvements:
  • All HTTP/3 traffic in the system is scanned and blocked if needed. Previously only HTTP/3 traffic in browsers with extension installed could be scanned.
  • Settings UI/Scam Protection/Browser extensions: when a given web browser is not installed, its extension’s URL can be copied to clipboard using the new “Copy link“ button in the “Browser not found“ popup. In particular, users of Chromium-based browsers can make use of this to obtain the URL of the Chrome extension and install it to their browsers.
  • Some minor text updates to unify wording with Mac/iOS/Android clients.
  • VPN taking long to connect on Windows 10 with Killswitch ON
  • “Search result rating” is now separate option at Settings->Scam protection tab.
Bug fixes:
  • VPN connection does not succeed often after system returns from sleep (PBL-15388)
Known issues:
  • Blocked HTTP/3 connections time out
  • Fragmented HTTP/3 connections are not blocked
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Jonny Quest said:
A nice little beta update. I hope all my friends here are doing well :) I'm not ignoring you all or this forum, just doing some other things with my time :)

Release 26.4 beta 1 (7.2.174)​

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Thanks for the update, @Jonny Quest. I’m glad to know you’re doing well and sharing these news with us. I’ve also decided to follow your example and hold on to the good memories of the pleasant exchanges we had, and of the contributions that were appreciated by fellow members. In the end, those moments of camaraderie are what make this community truly valuable. 🌟🤝🕊️
 
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Jonny Quest said:
A nice little beta update. I hope all my friends here are doing well :) I'm not ignoring you all or this forum, just doing some other things with my time :)

Release 26.4 beta 1 (7.2.174)​

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Hi, friend! Thanks for keeping me updated on the latest news and updates. I really appreciate it.
But this is going to be a really nice update.
 
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Szellem said:
Hi, friend! Thanks for keeping me updated on the latest news and updates. I really appreciate it.
But this is going to be a really nice update.
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You're welcome, my friend :) :)
I agree, they are doing their due diligence over there at F-Secure, and not "abandoning" the home user security side of things :)
 
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