Issue Installing Daedalus Wallet: Windows SmartScreen

Hello, new user here. I downloaded the Daedalus Wallet and got the following message:

Is there a reason why windows 8.1 considers the Daedalus wallet to be from an unrecognized publisher? I am new to cryptocurrencies in general, but have read everywhere to beware of malware. Is there an argument why I should distrust what Microsoft is telling me here?

Thanks in advance.

It’s safe. Not all publishers have gotten around to going through Microsoft’s procedures. In fact, I’d say from personal experience (20 yrs supporting Windows users), generally speaking only the “big names” have.

I would urge you to make sure that you downloaded the software through the official channels, just to be safe. I have no problem with Daedalus on win10.

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The file name is correct, i checked it earlier today. But you’re right, people need to be sure they have the right installer and not a malicious one.

Do you think people would benefit if they posted checksums of files along with download links? It would be good to have a simple way to do that operation for a non-technical person.

Well, asking where they got the installer from after checking the file name is the first thing i should do. Not sure if checksums are helpful for non-tech people.

The process I followed went as followed:

https://www.cardano.org/en/the-daedalus-wallet/ —> Clicked the Download button

Arrived at: https://daedaluswallet.io/
Clicked the menu header item: <DOWNLOAD “new”>

Directed to: https://daedaluswallet.io/#download
Clicked the <Windows - Version 0.10.1> button
Which Initiated download from:
https://s3-ap-southeast-1.amazonaws.com/update-cardano-mainnet.iohk.io/daedalus-0.10.1-cardano-sl-1.2.1.7310.0-mainnet-windows.exe

Looks good to me. Really, there’s a big difference between MS saying something’s not known to them, and an antivirus prog or such flagging up an actual issue.

Thanks for all of your feedback. Hopefully the IOHK will see this post and just eliminate the problem on their end by doing what is needed to get “recognized”.

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I just want to add/ reiterate that one the primary barriers to the adoption of crypto-currencies overall is fraud, lack of accountability, trust, etc. The cutting-edge, genius-level, possibly even state-actor-supported bad guys are specifically targeting the crypto space because compromising a crypto user’s device is almost a guarantee of immediate financial gain.

As such, the leading legitimate actors in the space (e.g., Cardano, IOHK, etc.) should be setting an example in terms of best practices, certainly as regards to security/ proper procedure.

Given the nature of the threats, not one toehold should be allowed on the “slippery slope” of making exceptions to any of the most standardized security protocols we have out there.

Again, that’s just me as someone relatively new to crypto and still struggling to understand everything.

PS - As a note, despite putting in tens upon tens of hours (probably closer to 100 hours then 50) of researching, reading, podcast viewing/listening, comparing the various tokens, etc. (and still considering myself to be largely uninformed on the subject of cryptos and the blockchain), my answer to anyone I know who asked me if I should download the Daedalus Wallet, when confronted with the problem that I encountered, would be “don’t download it”.

Again, this is just honest feedback from someone with an interest in crypto/ blockchain tech in general, who has come to take an interest in Cardano (amongst others) in particular. You can take it for what it’s worth.

Sorry but IMO you are overreacting to this issue.

It’s not about security, it’s about perception, and Microsoft’s attitude to other software publishers.

They say: these people haven’t come to us and asked nicely for our approval, so BEWARE!

It’s in their interests to promote FUD around everything outside the MS camp.

It’s probably statistically true that, overall, MS registered software is less likely to do harm. But there’s an enormous amount of non-registered software that’s not only harmless but extremely useful, and some of it poses a commercial threat to MS. I’m not saying that about Daedalus, but MS don’t care what harm they do, as long as it’s to someone else, so the wider they cast their net the better.

As I already said, there’s a big difference between an MS message saying “we don’t know this is ok” and an antimalware prog flagging something up as suspicious. In that case you’d be perfectly justified in telling people not to download it, but in this case you’re not. I’ve downloaded and installed literally hundreds of non-MS-registered programs over the years and had very few problems – actually, I don’t remember any.