Brave Browser
Brave Browser is a web browser with built-in blocking of ads and trackers. It’s made by Brave Software, based in the United States.
Criminals have used its name in fake downloads or scams, so get it only from brave.com.
What it is
Brave opens websites, plays videos and downloads files. It uses Chromium, the browser engine also used by Google Chrome. Its Shields feature blocks many ads, trackers and third-party cookies by default.
The browser handles the pages you open and files you choose to upload or download. Websites can ask for camera, microphone and location access. Screen access supports screen sharing. If you use the Leo AI assistant to summarise a page, its text is sent to Brave’s servers.
Brave publishes its source code and regularly releases security fixes. Its privacy policy also describes usage reporting and optional services, including encrypted syncing of bookmarks and passwords.
Who makes it
Brave Software is a software company founded in 2015 by Brendan Eich and Brian Bondy, with offices in San Francisco and London. Its legal name is Brave Software, Inc.. Its website is brave.com.
Is it the real one?
Every Mac app carries a signature from the developer who made it. Apple checks who the developer is before handing out the certificate, and macOS refuses to open an app whose signature has been tampered with.
The real Brave Browser is signed by Brave Software, Inc., Apple team ID KL8N8XSYF4. A copy signed by anyone else isn’t from Brave Software. HARD’s Mac app checks this for you; to check by hand, open Terminal and run codesign -dv "/Applications/Brave Browser.app", and look for that TeamIdentifier.
Its bundle ID, the name macOS knows it by, is com.brave.Browser or com.brave.Browser.beta or com.brave.Browser.nightly or com.brave.Browser.dev or com.brave.Browser.development. Download it only from brave.com, not from an ad or a link someone sends you.
Fakes. In July 2021, criminals used Google ads and a lookalike Brave download website to distribute malware through a fake installer. The reported download contained a Windows executable.
What it connects to
In normal use, Brave Browser talks to these places on the internet. A firewall that asks before apps connect, like the one in HARD’s Mac app, will show them.
| Address | Why |
|---|---|
updates.bravesoftware.com | Browser updates. |
go-updater.brave.com | Checks for component and blocking-list updates. |
brave-core-ext.s3.brave.com | Downloads components and blocking lists. |
componentupdater.brave.com | Fetches shared Chromium security components. |
safebrowsing.brave.com | Checks for unsafe websites and downloads. |
usage-ping.brave.com | Usage reporting, unless disabled. |
star-randsrv.bsg.brave.com | Supports Brave’s telemetry system. |
variations.brave.com | Manages gradual feature releases. |
What it can see
macOS asks you before an app can use these. You can change them any time in System Settings → Privacy & Security.
| Permission | What it’s for |
|---|---|
| Camera | Lets websites use your camera when you allow it, including for video calls. |
| Microphone | Lets websites record your voice when you allow it, including for calls. |
| Screen Recording | Allows screen sharing through websites. |
| Local Network | Allows access to websites and services on your local network. |
Security record
Problems with Brave Browser or Brave Software in the last three years, newest first. Keeping the app up to date covers the ones that were fixed.
| When | What happened | Source |
|---|---|---|
| A Split View flaw bypassed restrictions on when websites could receive certain cookies; it was fixed in version 1.83.10. | ↗ | |
| A flaw could make a malicious download appear to come from a trusted website in the file dialogue; it was fixed in version 1.74.48. | ↗ |
References
- Brave Browser Download brave.com
- About Brave brave.com
- Apple password manager resources: browser bundle identifiers github.com
- Brave: Mac update relaunch issue showing the older Dev bundle identifier github.com
- Brave Group Policy: release channels and local build identifier support.brave.app
- Brave Browser Privacy Policy brave.com
- Brave: How do I change site permissions? support.brave.app
- Brave: screen recording permissions on macOS github.com
- Brave Community: accessing the local network on Mac community.brave.app
- Brave support: background updates on Mac community.brave.com
- Network requests in Brave github.com
- Brave Release Notes brave.com
- Brave desktop changelog github.com
- With help from Google, impersonated Brave.com website pushes malware arstechnica.com
- NVD: CVE-2025-48980 nvd.nist.gov
- NVD: CVE-2025-23086 nvd.nist.gov
- The signature on a real installed copy, read by HARD with
codesign.