Microsoft begins flagging uTorrent as malware threat PUABundler:Win32/uTorrent_BundleInstaller. Yes, this is true and several users have reported that uTorrent has been blocked from running on Windows 11/10. Many antivirus vendors now classify uTorrent as malware or adware.
The uTorrent application is treated as “potentially unwanted software” by antivirus software. Microsoft treats uTorrent as malicious software and prevents it from being installed for Windows users.
If you attempt to download the uTorrent installer on your Windows 11 computer, Windows Security immediately detects it as PUABundler:Win32/uTorrent_BundleInstaller.
About uTorrent
uTorrent has been on the market for several years, and it is a popular torrent client that is frequently used for data downloading. More than 180 million people have downloaded uTorrent installer so far.
Although there are many alternate torrent client programs, uTorrent is the most widely used one. It is a piece of software made specifically for downloading large amounts of data from distant servers. In other words, it’s a peer-to-peer file sharing protocol used for distributing large amounts of data.
Microsoft Begins Flagging uTorrent as Malware
Recently, Microsoft began flagging uTorrent as malware and categorizing it as PUABundler:Win32/uTorrent_BundleInstaller. Windows Defender stops it running because it has a poor reputation. It is also mentioned that this application can affect the quality of your computing experience.
The parent company of uTorrent, BitTorrent Inc., is aware of this. The torrent company thinks one of their most recent releases may have caused them to be false positives. However, we are not convinced that’s true.
No matter what version of the uTorrent installer you download on Windows 11, several antivirus programs will flag it. We tested this by downloading the most recent version of uTorrent, and it appears that both freshly installed computers and devices with uTorrent already installed had the client blocked.
Testing uTorrent with Windows Security
On the Windows 11 PC running version 23H2, we downloaded the uTorrent installer from the web and the Windows Security app was quick to raise an alert.
From the screenshot below, we can see that uTorrent was detected as a potentially unwanted app by Windows Defender. Microsoft treats this alert as a low severity. What’s interesting is that Windows Security lets you bypass this alert and install the uTorrent app by whitelisting the installer. By selecting Actions > Allow on device, and then reinstalling the app, you can install it.
VirusTotal Check for uTorrent
In our next test, we uploaded the uTorrent web installer to the popular VirusTotal site to see how other antivirus programs treat this uTorrent web installer. And the results can be seen in the below screenshot.
Not surprising, Microsoft appears on the list of anti-viruses that flagged uTorrent as PUABundler:Win32/uTorrent_BundleInstaller. However, there are other AV programs such as ESET, Malwarebytes, McAfee, and Sophos that consider uTorrent as an adware.
uTorrent and BitTorrent installation on Windows
Next, we tested the installation of uTorrent and BitTorrent on two of our Windows 11 machines after whitelisting it in Windows Security. We have no idea why the installation files were placed in the AppData folder. They are intended to enter program files in the ideal scenario. Perhaps that is how the uTorrent program is coded.
Surprisingly, after we marked the uTorrent installer as safe in Windows Security, we were able to run the software and no security alerts popped up. This leaves us with a question whether uTorrent is actually a malware? Or it’s just that Windows that considers it as a malware and flags it potentially unwanted app? Please let us know your thoughts on this in the comments section.
As MS and other companies want to view the consumer as an endless wallet, they want to control everything by making it a subscription service rather than actually owning anything…. this leads to the evolution and redefining of terms and software.
By doing this they can flag things that actually help the “little people” and scare them into their endless trap of data harvesting and yearly fees.
Its pathetic.
I believe that Microsoft (and other companies) conciously declare uTorrent to PUA for advertising reasons. It’s a pitty. In my opinion the developer of uTorrent should change their software in order to pass the test without loosing its purpose. I don’t know if this was realistic.
I have been using utorrent for a long time. The program itself is harmless, it is the software downloaded via that program that can cause problems and maybe why MsftDefender is marking it Malware, to prevent the possibility of downloading any because unlike everything else you download on Windows, the downloads through Utorrent do not go through a cert check.
it’s the same thing for the poor Gadgets in which I had to manually re-install using the 8-gadget pack… it’s a shame really.
it is malware for SURE
why for SURE what details can you provide?
Utorrent and any other P2P system have been thorns in the sides of MS and many other software companies because people share the software they want to sell. making them persona non grata was just another way of trying to stop sharing. A torrent is only as safe as the original file. clean file start no viruses. dirty file to start then obviously its spreading a virus or trojan…etc.. MS apple and Google all want to control the internet 100% for $$$$’s they have obliterated the nets original purpose the free and complete exchange of information across the planet. Hell the largest CREATORS of viruses are anti virus companies even more so than state run hacking groups.