Minecraft Launcher

Official launcher by Mojang Studios

One place to launch your games, manage your profile, and find updates.

DownloadCheck a file you have

How we got this result

  1. Files checkedWe compare the fingerprint and the content of each file with the malware we and others have found, and look at what is inside it.5 of 5 official filesLast checked on 2 Nov 2026
  2. Passed Nothing harmful found in its 5 official files.Our checks look for known signs of harm. They cannot prove that a file is harmless.

At a glance

Download
Official files for Windows, macOS and Linux.
Fake sites
4 fake sites found.
Privacy
Not read. We read the code of Java programs only, and its files hold none.
Releases
No release dates published.

Every official file

See each file in Releases

The files of its download page, by system and kind of download.

SystemInstallerArchiveDisk imagePackage
WindowsMinecraftInstaller.exePassedInstaller (exe)File checked on 2 Nov 2026No fileNo fileNo file
WindowsMSIMinecraftInstaller.msiPassedInstaller (msi)File checked on 2 Nov 2026No fileNo fileNo file
macOSNo fileNo fileMinecraft.dmgPassedDisk imageFile checked on 2 Nov 2026No file
LinuxNo fileMinecraft.tar.gzPassedArchive (.tar.gz)File checked on 2 Nov 2026No fileMinecraft.debPassedPackage (.deb)File checked on 2 Nov 2026
PassedNo file

Have a copy of Minecraft Launcher? Check that it is the official one.

Drop it here. We compare its fingerprint with the official Minecraft Launcher files and the files of the fake sites we know.

Official site
minecraft.net

Which file for my computer?

MinecraftInstaller.exe

PassedNothing harmful found32.3 MB

Download

The same file we checked, straight from aka.ms.

Official site

4 sites use its name to give other files. See Fake sites

Download page
minecraft.net/en-us/download
Account
A Microsoft account that owns the game.
Microsoft Store
On Windows, its page also offers the launcher in the Microsoft Store.

Passed

Nothing harmful found in its 5 official files.

Our checks look for known signs of harm. They cannot prove that a file is harmless.

What we checked

A launcher runs on your computer like any program, and it downloads the game and its mods, so harmful code in it can steal your accounts or files.

Files checkedEach official file is downloaded on a separate machine, opened with every file inside it and never run. ClamAV, a free antivirus, and our YARA rules look for known signs of harm in all of it.
5 of its 5 official files, with every file inside them.Last checked on 2 Nov 2026
Deep checkOur own tools read the Java code in the files and look for what harmful code does, like stealing logins or running hidden programs. They read Java code only.
Not possible: we read the code of Java programs only, and its files hold none.
SignatureThe name of the company or person that signed the file. A file changed after signing loses its signature.
Signed by Microsoft Corporation.Our tool could not confirm the certificate chains
Not read
What the starters download. The .msi, the macOS disk image and the Linux files are small starters (a bootstrap program, an updater) that download the rest of the launcher from Mojang when first opened.

What is inside

The 12 files inside MinecraftInstaller.exe.

Programs for Windows, Mac or Linux
None.
Graphics
None.
Other
12 files.

Every file

  • .rsrc/9 files
    • GROUP_ICON/1 file
      • 3251290 B
    • ICON/6 files
      • 1.ico1.1 KB
      • 2.ico4.2 KB
      • 3.ico9.4 KB
      • 4.ico17 KB
      • 5.ico66 KB
      • 6.ico264 KB
    • MANIFEST/1 file
      • 1490 B
    • version.txt1.7 KB
  • .reloc512 B
  • .text32740 KB
  • CERTIFICATE10 KB

Not read

We read the code of Java programs only, and its files hold none, so we cannot tell what it sends.

Releases

Current files: the official files of its download page.

Current fileVersionSystemReleasedFileOur checkGet it on
LinuxPackage (.deb)Minecraft.deb806.5 KB SHA-256 de839e5221…PassedNothing harmful found. Checked on 2 Nov 2026.2 Nov 2026
1 of 5 current files

A fake site uses the name of Minecraft Launcher to offer its download from an address that is not the official one.

How to know the official site

Official site
minecraft.net
Files come from
aka.ms and launcher.mojang.com
Signed byThe name of the company or person that signed the file. A file changed after signing loses its signature.
Microsoft Corporation, on MinecraftInstaller.exe
SHA-256A fingerprint of the file. The same fingerprint means the same file, byte for byte.
MinecraftInstaller.exe0fc1ded9a9459789b76104275682e603868181a0e1928ec0681810e7c8e2bf17Every official file and its SHA-256, in Releases

The 4 fake sites we foundChecked on 4 Nov 2026

Of these, all give a file with malware. Sites in one fold share their pages and their download.

minecraftlauncher.netminecraftlauncher.prominecraft-launcher.appminecraftlauncher.ioMalware4 sites with a link-swap script. All online

A script on their pages replaces the Mojang and Microsoft download links with links to download-direct.opik.net, a server outside Mojang and Microsoft. It sends to a zip in a public file store that also holds the zips of the fake Prism Launcher and HMCL sites.

It is the script of the fake Prism Launcher sites, with another program name. Three of the sites were registered at Spaceship in the same second, on 23 Aug 2026, two days before the fake Prism Launcher sites.

  • minecraftlauncher.netOnline. Its download buttons are swapped for the fake zip.Registered 23 Aug 2026 at Spaceship · Checked 4 Nov 2026
  • minecraftlauncher.proOnline. Its download buttons are swapped for the fake zip.Registered 23 Aug 2026 at Spaceship · Checked 4 Nov 2026
  • minecraft-launcher.appOnline. Its download buttons are swapped for the fake zip.Registered 23 Aug 2026 at Spaceship · Checked 4 Nov 2026
  • minecraftlauncher.ioOnline. Its download buttons are swapped for the fake zip.Registration date not public · Checked 4 Nov 2026

Their download

The setup in this zip installs a hidden remote control program: someone else can use your computer.

The download is a zip. The setup inside has the name of the Minecraft Launcher installer, but it is SqlSetupBootstrapper.exe, a program of Microsoft SQL Server, signed by Microsoft. Next to it is a small unsigned file, SqlSetupBootstrapper.dll. A Windows program loads the code libraries it needs, its DLL files, and looks for them in its own folder first. The kit uses this to make Microsoft's program run its own DLL: security researchers call this DLL side-loading.

The DLL decodes two data files of the zip into an MSI, the format of Windows installers, and installs it with no window. Then it opens the real Minecraft Launcher installer, which is also in the zip under another name, so you see the normal setup and nothing else.

The MSI calls itself Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable (x64), by Microsoft Corporation, the name of a package that many games install. It is really ScreenConnect, a remote control program that companies use to help their staff from a distance. It installs as a service, a program that Windows starts by itself each time the computer starts, also in Safe Mode with networking. The service connects to a relay, a server that passes the connection on, at 442.open-fast-ports.com (442.fast-ports.com in the zips of 5 Nov 2026). Whoever runs that relay can see your screen, use your mouse and keyboard and move files, at any time, with nobody at the computer.

What you would see is hidden too. Its settings turn off the icon near the clock, the banner that says the computer is being controlled and the messages when someone connects, and keep your wallpaper on during a session. In Settings, Apps, it shows as Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable (x64), by Microsoft Corporation, with no Modify or Repair button. Its service has a version number for a name, and its folder in Program Files is named like a Visual C++ package. Only the files inside that folder, and the process in Task Manager, keep the ScreenConnect name.

It also adds a credential provider, the part of Windows that draws the sign-in screen, so the other side can work there too, before anyone signs in.

ClamAV and our YARA rules found nothing in the zip: the MSI only exists once the DLL has decoded it. Decoded, our YARA rules recognise ScreenConnect. The zip is rebuilt often, each time with a new SHA-256, so a list of known files cannot catch it.

Technical details

MinecraftInstaller.zip
SHA-256 51772141d6e60c26dab0f3059db4e070f7a0bb161c71950f96ce71f210b99f8340 MB, checked on 2 Nov 2026
redist\2019\patch.dat
SHA-256 d9f07a25f8209ff2e2e8325ac281ed97acf54f8deeec4929e83b8cf143933f2dThe same in every copy until 4 Nov 2026
Decoded MSI
SHA-256 1952c44ec49dc2bbe1dccc0299b9435d04ab13a86f5c568ac5a0883d07b7f799Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable (x64) 14.28.29910.0, ScreenConnect 24.1.6.8875
Relay
442.open-fast-ports.com, port 8041 (442.fast-ports.com from 5 Nov 2026)Unattended Access session, tag c=MinecraftInstaller
Service
Named 14.28.29910.0, starts with WindowsAlso under SafeBoot\Network

If you downloaded a file from one of these sites

  1. Drop the file in the Scanner. It tells you if it is an official file of Minecraft Launcher or a file of these sites.
  2. If it is not an official file and you have not opened it, delete it.
  3. If you opened it: the setup installs ScreenConnect, a genuine remote control program that antivirus programs usually do not flag, so a scan is not enough. Check for it and remove it with the steps of our report.
  4. If you signed in to the launcher it installed: use "sign out everywhere" in your Microsoft security settings and change your Microsoft account password.
  5. Get Minecraft Launcher from its official site, minecraft.net .
Downloads
Not publishedMinecraft Launcher does not publish how many times it is downloaded.
License
Closed source

About

The Minecraft Launcher is a PC hub for accessing Minecraft games, downloading game versions, and launching them from one place. It lets players manage their profiles and Java skins, and access account information. Players can create Quick Play shortcuts to favorite worlds, browse game updates and snapshots, and read Minecraft news and event announcements. The launcher also provides access to multiplayer servers and settings for language, accessibility, and other features.

Written from its official pages: minecraft.net . How we write it