Is Browsing Protection by WithSecure safe?
Browsing Protection by WithSecure forwards every visited URL to a locally installed WithSecure security app for reputation scanning.
The extension intercepts all HTTP and HTTPS navigations and sends the URL, referrer, and tab information to the WithSecure native security host (withsecure_ols_https) installed on the user's device. On startup it also transmits all open tab URLs, browser name, platform details, and the extension ID to the native host as part of initialization. No data leaves the local machine — all communication is between the browser extension and the locally installed WithSecure application.
Who publishes itWithSecure Oy - no other listings under this identity, 3 shared hostnames
WithSecure Oy - no other listings under this identity, 3 shared hostnames
What this publisher told the store about itself, and the other listings that told it the same thing.
Shared hosts - 3 hostnames
Hostnames hardcoded in this extension that few other listings call. That can mean one operator behind both, and it can equally mean a small shared vendor, so it is context rather than a conclusion. Hosts that many listings call are left out: they are services, not connections.
AI-generated. Findings may contain errors. Those marked Verified have been manually reviewed.
Publishers can request a review.
What it can do
Permissions this extension asks for, as declared in version 5.0.74. Asking for a permission is not a finding on its own - it is what the extension can do if it chooses to.
Read and change your data on every site you visit
http://*/*
Read and change your data on every secure site you visit
https://*/*
See the address and title of every tab you have open
tabs
Talk to a program installed on your computer, outside the browser's sandbox
nativeMessaging
See every page you navigate to, as you navigate to it
webNavigation
Store data in your browser
storage
Watch every request your browser makes
webRequest
Watch, block and rewrite every request your browser makes
webRequestBlocking
See, disable and uninstall your other extensions, including your security ones
management
Where it sends data
Destinations our analysis observed Browsing Protection by WithSecure contacting. Sending data somewhere is not a finding on its own - an extension that syncs your settings has to talk to its own server - but it is where your data can go, and who else it goes to.
- withsecure_ols_https (local native messaging host)
Browsing Protection by WithSecure sends data to withsecure_ols_https (local native messaging host). Named as a recipient in this extension's own analysis.