Published: August 2025
By the ConnectWise Product and Security Teams
Navigating a Rapidly Evolving Cybersecurity Landscape
Remote access software like ScreenConnect is vital for MSP and IT professionals, but the digital threat environment is shifting. Recently, the remote access industry overall has been tasked to meet new security and trust standards driven by updated requirements from certificate authorities, software platforms, and evolving attacker tactics.
We’re sharing this update to highlight how ConnectWise is rising up to meet this challenge, and to offer transparency associated with recent events.
How the Landscape has Changed
Sophisticated threat actors are evolving and leveraging new techniques like AI-driven phishing and rapidly scaled cloud infrastructure. In parallel, certificate authorities and software platforms have raised the bar on security and code signing practices, requiring all vendors to adapt.
Timeline: What Happened
- June 3: A certificate authority revoked one of our code-signing certificates, impacting ScreenConnect products.
- June 6: We received confirmation that the use of certain customization data in our signed binaries no longer complied with their trust standards.
- June 8–9: ConnectWise has teams working around the clock to start the migration to new certificates and architectures to meet these standards.
- June 14–21: We completed architectural changes to the ScreenConnect installer, moving configuration data out of the signed binary and into separate files.
- By July 7: Partners using on-premises versions now sign their own clients, and certain customization features were restricted.
Why This Was Necessary
- No vulnerabilities were found in the underlying code. However, evolving industry standards have required software providers to rethink how configuration and signing are managed. The revocations were part of a broader, industry-wide push to improve trust and integrity for remote access solutions.
What Has ConnectWise Done
Strengthened Certificate Management:
- On-premises partners now sign their own ScreenConnect clients, increasing control and traceability.
- For cloud-hosted instances, ConnectWise manages certificate signing for partners to ensure rapid deployment and response.
Installer Improvements:
- Configuration data is now separated from the signed binary, validated at deployment, and protected from post-signing edits.
Enhanced End-User Protections:
Better Monitoring:
- Expanded telemetry and monitoring to detect suspicious activity faster and work more closely with authorities if threats emerge.
Partner Communication:
- Multiple communication channels, including email, our Trust Center, in-app notifications, social media, and live partner briefings.
Looking Ahead
Change is never easy, especially when it impacts existing workflows. But ConnectWise believes it’s critical to evolve alongside, and help lead, the industry in building secure, auditable, and resilient remote access solutions. We’re committed to continuous product updates, education and transparency, so partners and customers can move forward with confidence.
We welcome feedback from partners and the broader industry. Security and trust are journeys we all share.
ConnectWise Product and Security Teams
