Is B-ROLL Safe? SmartScreen, Signing and Checksums

What does “Windows protected your PC” mean?#

“Windows protected your PC” is the Microsoft Defender SmartScreen screen for a downloaded app that Windows does not recognize yet. B-ROLL is not code-signed, so SmartScreen’s warning is a reputation check, not a malware verdict.

Microsoft’s SmartScreen overview describes two checks on downloaded apps. SmartScreen compares the file with a list of programs reported as unsafe, and with a list of files that are well known and downloaded often. A file missing from the second list gets a caution warning, and Microsoft says that items with no reputation are marked as higher risk.

The blue screen therefore tells you the file is new to Windows. The checksum check in the next sections tells you whether the file is the one Ema Zamboni published.

Is B-ROLL code-signed?#

No. As of September 2026, neither BROLL-Setup.exe nor BROLL-portable.exe carries an Authenticode signature, so the SmartScreen details show an unknown publisher instead of a name.

A code signature is a certificate that names the publisher and proves the file was not changed after signing. Signing alone would not guarantee a quiet install: Microsoft’s overview says SmartScreen also weighs the reputation of the certificate, and a new certificate has none. B-ROLL is a free, donation-supported app made by video editor Ema Zamboni with Claude as coding help, and the story of how it was built is in building a YouTube downloader with Claude as coding help.

Two more facts belong here, stated plainly. B-ROLL’s source code is not published, so no one outside the project can review it. The SHA-256 checksum published for each file is the one verification the project offers today.

How do you verify your B-ROLL download?#

The SHA-256 checksum is the verification: a 64-character fingerprint that changes completely if a single byte of the file changes. Microsoft’s Get-FileHash documentation explains that two files with the same hash have the same content.

The checklist shows each check, how to run it and the result you should see before you run B-ROLL.

The PowerShell command is the same for both files; change the name to the one you downloaded.

Get-FileHash .\BROLL-Setup.exe -Algorithm SHA256

What does B-ROLL install on first launch?#

B-ROLL’s own exe does not contain yt-dlp, ffmpeg or Deno. On first launch it downloads those three tools from their official GitHub releases, and sets up a fourth, a local helper, from its GitHub project and the npm registry, all into %LOCALAPPDATA%\Broll. On Ema’s PC, the B-ROLL data folder with all four tools measured 473.7 MB on 2026-09-24.

These are the sizes Windows showed for each part on that PC:

• yt-dlp.exe, 17.0 MB: the downloader, explained in what yt-dlp is and whether it is safe.
• ffmpeg.exe, 194.8 MB: merges and converts video and audio.
• deno.exe, 96.4 MB: the JavaScript runtime yt-dlp uses.
• pot-provider\, 165.4 MB in 9,245 files: bgutil-ytdlp-pot-provider, an open-source helper that yt-dlp talks to on 127.0.0.1, port 4416.

The same folder holds config.json with your settings and history, and cookies.txt only if you set one. The installer itself adds the program folder, a Start Menu group named BROLL with Uninstall BROLL, and an optional desktop icon. B-ROLL has no account, ads or telemetry, and the full list of servers it contacts is on the privacy page for the site and the app.

One optional setting touches the registry: Open B-ROLL at login writes the value BROLL under HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run. Uninstalling removes the program but leaves %LOCALAPPDATA%\Broll; delete that folder by hand for a full removal.

How do you run B-ROLL after the SmartScreen warning?#

Run B-ROLL by clicking More info, then Run anyway, after the checksum matches. The six numbered steps under “How to check and run B-ROLL after a SmartScreen warning” cover the whole sequence, from the download to the first launch.

The order matters: verify first, then run. Clicking Run anyway tells Windows to trust this one file, so do it only for the file whose hash you just compared. The installer then asks whether to install for all users or only for you; “only for me” needs no admin rights.

If B-ROLL opens but the first download sits at 0 percent, the first-launch setup may still be fetching its tools. YouTube download stuck at 0% or 99% covers that wait, and how to install B-ROLL and download your first video picks up from there.

What if your antivirus flags B-ROLL?#

An antivirus alert on a file whose checksum matches the published one can be a false positive, and only you can decide whether to trust the file. B-ROLL is packaged as a single-file exe, a format that antivirus heuristics sometimes treat with suspicion.

Handle a detection in this order:

1. Compare the checksum again. If it does not match, delete the file.
2. If it matches, submit the file to Microsoft through the Microsoft file submission form, which Microsoft’s SmartScreen overview names for warnings shown incorrectly. For a SmartScreen warning, select Microsoft Defender SmartScreen as the product. Other antivirus vendors run their own false-positive forms.
3. Email info@emazamboni.it with the file name and the detection name, so the report reaches Ema.
4. Avoid turning off your antivirus as a whole. If you choose to allow B-ROLL, allow that one file only.

A quarantined tool shows up later in B-ROLL’s Advanced panel as ffmpeg: missing or JS runtime: missing; Reinstall tools downloads it again. More fixes live in YouTube downloader not working? Fixes for editors, and for the risks of the web alternative, see are online YouTube downloader sites safe.