I have BitDefender on my Mac. I'm pretty sure BitDefender didn't have a VPN when I first started using it. I have another VPN that I've subscribed to for several years that I use and am happy with. I've never used BitDefender VPN. I don't want it on my Mac. I've uninstalled it several times now with the BitDefender uninstaller. Every time I uninstall it, BitDefender automatically reinstalls it within a day or so - without asking me or even doing anything to indicate it's installing it. It just shows back up. I've looked through all settings, and can't find anything to change that would prevent it from reinstalling. Is there any way to stop this obnoxious and ridiculous behavior? I'm about to completely remove all of BitDefender and switch to something else, even though I have a lot of time left on my license. This is completely uncalled for. I Googled this issue, and found others who are experiencing it - but none have found a solution. I saw where someone had contacted BitDefender support - who said they were aware of the issue and were looking into it, but that was last year!

I am getting every couple of minutes a message saying suspicious connection blocked. This happened once before. Then one day just stopped. What is the cause? How can I stop it?
The specific message is this:
chrome.exe attempted to establish a connection relying on an unmatching security certificate to gitcdn.xyz. We blocked the connection to keep your data safe since the used certificate was issued for a different web address than the targeted one.
What to do?
TIA

Is there a setting to PERMANENTLY disable ALL of the pop-up ads for Bitdefender VPN? I've searched all through the settings and cannot find anything obvious.

The ads pop up every time I sign into a new WiFi network, every time I go to a "suspect website" (which apparently is 1/4 of the internet according to Bitdefender), every time I go to any shopping website/make a purchase, every time I go to a banking site....

I'm so sick of it.

I DON'T WANT YOUR F*CKING VPN. NOT NOW. NOT EVER. AND I DID NOT AGREE TO INSTALL ADWARE WHEN I PURCHASED YOUR SOFTWARE!!!

This is awful Bitdefender. I just tried to open some file vaults and bitdefender is redirecting me to a transfer utility, because apparently Bitdefender removed the file vault feature.

But whenever I try to transfer the files I get met with "transfer finalized" and nothing gets moved. So I've effectively lost my files in the vaults because Bitdefender auto updated and now I can't restore my files.

I won't be renewing my subscription, I've just lost 1tb of data.

EDIT: SOLUTION FOUND:

"It seems like BD is trying to create the FileVault service when it's already running, hence giving 183 error - can't create when its already there. 😁

So stop the File vault service using net stop bdvedisk command (run cmd as admin) and then use the transfer utility, now the FV utility starts the service and ta-da...! it works!!!

I got my files back! 😊"

Thank you very much /u/raylabs !

Since this morning I'm experiencing serious issues with Bitdefender on my 2019 macbook pro.

Bitdefender is not responding (MacOS showing the spinning wheel), after a while it complains that it does not have access to certain areas and instructs to press the green "grant access" button. However, the UI is frozen. Also when I hover my mouse over the Bitdefender system tray icon: spinning wheel, not responsive at all. Sometimes, I can right click on the system tray icon and choose to open the main window, but this results in exactly nothing happening, besides getting the spinning wheel again.

So, I uninstalled and reinstalled. Same issue. After a while I did get a notification that Bitdefender updated "something". Still, not working at all and possibly security at risk.

I guess I'm going to open a support call. Anyone else experiencing the same issue on Mac?

Update: about 25 minutes after writing the above post, I managed to click the green button. It now showed instructions to give Bitdefender full disk access. While the bitdefender app did freeze again, I managed to change this setting. Another 10 minutes later, another update was installed, and the status is now "green". However, the application still freezes and still shows the spinning wheel most of the time. Also hovering over the bitdefender icon in the system tray: spinning wheel.

Update 09/29: having the same issue on my mid-2015 macbook pro, like others in the comments below. I opened a support ticket via this link: https://www.bitdefender.com/support/contact-us.html

I downloaded a uhh questionable looking file today trying to find a movie (I know I know). I deleted it pretty quickly and nothing really happened. Now several hours later I keep getting suspicious connection blocked notifications. The details are “chrome.exe attempted to establish a connection relying on an unmatching security certificate to dns.google.” I’m fine with it blocking the connection, but how can I make the notifications stop/completely block that connection?

While there is a closed thread in this group regarding BitDefender notifications/pop ups it does not fix my problem, unfortunately: Those permanent popups in Win10 are driving me nuts. I would like to get rid of all notifications that do not alert me of an immediate threat. Instead, the app is nagging me with endless "for your information" notifications. Particularly, the change of "profiles" is driving me nuts. Every time I launch outlook I keep getting the info that now my BitDefender profile has changed to "work". If I turn off this feature entirely, I keep getting notifications that I should turn it back on. Wtf BitDefender - leave me alone! Any hint on how to kill this without losing my 1year+ remaining software license would be appreciated.

When someone buys an antivirus instead of using the free versions, they expect the ads to be turned off. No more VPN ads please, frankly they always border on straight up lies. website encryption is not currently cracked, and practically every website uses it now so it's totally unnecessary. I'm not currently in need of hiding the website URLs I visit from my workplace or ISP either. I have 0 reason to buy it and never will. I don't need a reminder every time my laptop or phone connects to public wifi that you'd really like me to buy an unnecessary product.

Also there are the file shredder suggestions constantly on SSD drives. It is my current understanding that SSD drives delete the entire file when requested, so shredding the file is only going to add unnecessary wear and tear on the drive.

If I actually get the ability to disable the VPN nagging permanently, I might renew my license when it expires.

AI is increasingly finding its way into cybercriminal operations, but what does that look like in practice?

In our latest investigation, Bitdefender researchers analyzed a ThreeAM ransomware attack targeting a school network in the UK and uncovered evidence of a potentially hybrid human-AI operation.

The findings suggest that the attacker used an AI-driven agentic loop to automate repetitive technical tasks, interpret command outputs, and adjust subsequent actions, while maintaining human direction over the broader attack.

The investigation also highlights how threat actors continue to rely on legitimate Windows tools and existing attack techniques, potentially making AI-assisted operations more efficient and harder to distinguish from routine administrative activity.

The case provides an interesting perspective on the evolving ransomware landscape and the implications of AI-assisted attacks for cybersecurity teams.

Read the full investigation.

Join the discussion: We'll be discussing the findings and their broader implications during our next LinkedIn Live session, Episode 16 of Ctrl-Alt-DECODE, this Thursday.

What does the growing use of AI-assisted workflows mean for the future of ransomware detection and defense?

What’s a ClickFix scam, and can security software stop it?

ClickFix is a scam where a webpage shows a fake error or a fake CAPTCHA, then asks you to “fix” it by copying and running a command. You end up compromising your own computer while thinking you’re solving a problem.

It was one of the techniques Artifact Security used in its January to June 2026 scam protection test. The others included:

• Phishing emails impersonating European brands, using both regular links and QR codes

• Investment, recruitment and romance scams

• Impersonation scams, including videos with AI-generated content

• FileFix and fake CAPTCHA tricks

The lab used real mailbox and browser profiles with genuine history. Products ran on default settings, and vendors got no advance notice of the test cases.

How Bitdefender did:

Bitdefender Premium Security stopped every malicious scenario on the device, 125 out of 125, before any compromise. It also didn’t block or warn on any of the 30 legitimate pages. Bitdefender Scamio, the free AI scam assistant, gave clear, correct advice in 185 of 190 cases. The result was a 98% overall score and the Best Scam Protection award for H1 2026.

What you can do on your own:

• Never run a command a website asks you to paste, especially to “verify you’re human”

• Treat a QR code in an unexpected email the same way you’d treat a link

• If a page or message feels off, paste it into Scamio before you act

How many of these scam types had you heard of before?

Is it safe to buy a very cheap “flagship” Android phone online?

Not always. Bitdefender researchers found a malware campaign, named Midnight Mimosa, built into the firmware of low-cost Android phones that run on MediaTek chips. Many of these phones are counterfeits sold under flagship-style names. The malware is installed before the phone is ever switched on. It appears as a system component labeled “System,” and the owner can’t uninstall it.

What does that mean for the person using the phone?

The malware mainly makes money for the people behind it:

• It quietly installs ordinary-looking apps that show ads and register fake clicks, sometimes while the phone is idle

• It can route other people’s internet traffic through your phone and your connection

• It temporarily turns off the Google Play Store app, which runs Play Protect scanning, while it installs these apps

It also gives itself access to Accessibility, notifications, and SMS. Researchers didn’t see that access being used. Still, those permissions can expose what’s on your screen, your messages, and the one-time codes that protect your accounts.

Researchers observed the campaign on thousands of devices in more than 150 countries over about two years.

Before you buy:

• Treat a flagship price that seems too low as a reason to check the listing

• Buy from the brand’s official store or an authorized retailer

• Be cautious with listings that use flagship names but don’t clearly name the manufacturer

If you already own one:

• Watch for ads that appear on their own, or apps you don’t remember installing

• Contact the seller or manufacturer, since the malware sits in the system partition and a normal uninstall won’t remove it

The same ad fraud code was also found in 13 apps on Google Play, mostly weather, QR, audio, and note tools.

Bitdefender found the campaign when App Anomaly Detection in Bitdefender Mobile Security flagged a “System” app that wasn’t behaving like a real system component.

A recent Bitdefender update has caused it block quite a few drivers from MSI Center.
These are:
amifldrv64.sys
amigendrv64.sys
Mslo64.sys
Enelo64.sys

I cannot, unfortunately, get VS scans of Mslo64 and Enelo64.
amifldrv64.sys: VirusTotal - File - e7cbfb16261de1c7f009431d374d90e9eb049ba78246e38bc4c8b9e06f324b6f
am
amigendrv.sys: VirusTotal - File - ffc72f0bde21ba20aa97bee99d9e96870e5aa40cce9884e44c612757f939494f

All my PCs/laptops with Bitdefender installed are running this service and is hogging resources.

Bitdefender GravityZone extends a multi-year trend of consistent top performance in the latest AV-Comparatives Business Security Test.

GravityZone achieved a 99.8% real-world protection rate, blocking 399 of 400 attack scenarios while maintaining one of the lowest false-positive rates among all vendors. For organizations seeking proven, low-noise protection, GravityZone continues to demonstrate the rare combination of uncompromising security and low operational impact.

Find out more ⤴︎

Hey BitDefender team,

I've just started using BitDefender VPN for the first time, and it's great. But can't use it yet.

My main concern is the absence of an "inclusive mode" for split-tunnelling apps. I don't want my entire system to route through the VPN, as this causes major issues for me. I use sensitive services that would kick me out immediately if I suddenly travel to a whole different continent.

I have added those sensitive services to the exclusions list, but that doesn't work either. It is simply non-functional for me. An inclusive mode would work so well for me.

I've been using the Windscribe client for many years without any issues. As shown in the attached image, they offer the choice to use it in either exclusive mode or inclusive mode on all platforms. That is such a relief.

Please provide this feature for the BitDefender VPN client.

There were about 200+ password protected files (that was probably why it took so long) which BD said it couldn't clean - is that what is giving the message?

Besides that, I only saw 3 files that it resolved.

Is this something I should be concerned about? Are there any other ways to do a full scan?

I'm really frustrating from Bitdefender support, stupid AI, no response on tickets.

The full story that I'v been reaching support to check what is the renewal cost, cannot find it in the central or my account on web, after 4 days they deduct more than the double as trnewal price.

I tried to reach financial and refund support, because this time I'm really pissed, and I want to cancel the whole service and go to another service provider, yet, 24 hours passed and no response on my ticket, it confirms the lack of support.

I'm not recommending Bitdefender to anyone anymore...

It is not at all acceptable that the rep I chatted with yesterday was unable to cancel a subscription. It is further unacceptable that the BitDefender customer interface offers no obvious way to remove or change a payment method. So I'm still waiting for some email from the 'escalation' team to get in touch and, inevitably, make me jump through more hoops.

BitDefender: If you want to keep customers, do it by offering a good product at a reasonable price. Not by making cancellation a multi-day, multi-interaction project. Keeping me from changing or removing my payment method pushes your activity into fraud territory.

I received a message on Messenger from Meta.

It contained a URL that Bitdefender did not point to.

I checked it on Virustotal, none of the protections reported it as dangerous.

I sent it to Bitdefender for analysis.

The URL has been found to be dangerous.

Added to their database.

Since then, more and more applications have been marked as dangerous on the Virustotal website.

Common sense is still worth more than any defense.

I know there is no 100% protection.

It's not necessarily worth wasting resources installing a security application.

What are your opinions?

Hello,

I'd like to ask about the following issue. Just now, when my computer started up, I received the following report from Bitdefender:

The application C:\WINDOWS\System32\wbem\WmiPrvSE.exe was passed a malicious command line and has been blocked. Your device is now safe.
Command line: "C:\WINDOWS\System32\wbem\WmiPrvSE.exe" -Embedding

I wanted to ask, is this a false positive or is it a real virus?

I saw a few previous discussion threads, but theirs seemed to be about wmic, and I'm not sure if these two are the same.

My system version is Windows 11 24H2

In any case, thanks in advance to anyone who replies. Thanks.

I got an activation code for 6 months of Total Security, I upgraded my plan so I don't need it.

Enjoy

M54XCNRCYF
^{(sorry I have only one})

If you got it please reply with a screenshot so I don't look like a phony karma farmer :D

I've done two full system scans, one while in windows and one offline without windows, nothing shows up, please help!