Windows Tells Me My Game Is Unsafe

[The Fluxmaster]

I have created a game and a website and uploaded the executable to Google Drive. However, when I download it from Google Drive, I get multiple messages that the file is unsafe and should be deleted immediately. This would likely discourage anyone from playing the game. Is there any way I can eliminate that message without paying money to someone for some sort of certification?

[eri0o]

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/threat-protection/microsoft-defender-smartscreen/microsoft-defender-smartscreen-overview

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/threat-protection/intelligence/developer-faq

As far as I understand, when a file is downloaded from the internet, the browser tags (streams in NTFS, which are like extended attributes in non-Windows systems) the file with information from where it was downloaded from and smart screen runs comparison for that specific website and see if it ran safely across multiple computers - or some similar algorithm.

My best guess would be pushing your game through a known game store like Steam, itch.io or other, which would be a known website that could enhance chances of positive classification on Smart Screen, instead of your own website - at least until you are known enough to have multiple people running safely games downloaded from your website.

Can you tell the exact messages you are getting? Because of its really telling it's a virus and isn't you can report to Microsoft. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/wdsi/filesubmission/

A note, you still need reputation even with a certificate.

[isatche]

Some time when I compile a game for testing, Windows Defender gets triggered. It happens often, but not every time which makes it very annoying when I try to figure what triggers it. I just learned to ignore it since it doesn't have any impact on workflow or playeability.