FFSMC Vigie Lab — Essential Edition

Essential Edition — Quiet Windows down and lighten your computer. Privacy settings for Windows, browsers and hardware makers, control over what goes out to the Internet, and a first big clean-up.

What's included

• privacy settings for Windows, Copilot and Recall, Office, Edge, Chrome, Firefox and Brave
• hardware maker trackers: NVIDIA, Intel, HP, Lenovo, Dell, ASUS, Razer, and a few common programs (Adobe Acrobat, CCleaner, Visual Studio)
• control over what goes out to the Internet, program by program
• the world map of where your data goes
• microphone, camera and screen capture: who uses them, and how to cut them off
• the big clean-up of Windows junk files
• what starts with Windows
• unnecessary Windows features and space reserved for nothing
• the privacy score out of 100 and the weekly summary
• the "Misleading links" extension, basic version: it stops you before a link whose text lies about where it goes
• payment mode: one button before you pay online, and for 20 minutes Vigie Lab reminds you of your bank's golden rules and warns you if someone could take control of the computer

Who it's for: anyone who wants to take back control of what their computer says about them, and make it lighter.

New threat spotted: protection within 48 hours

Scammers change their methods all the time. Every morning, we look out for new traps. When a real threat appears, we get to work on the protection straight away. Vigie Lab tells you about the new version, and nothing is installed without your agreement. On 9 November 2026, for example, the fake "Help Desk" contacting employees on Teams and the Marsalek password thief were both dealt with the same day.

The scam protections themselves come from the Complete edition up.

Your computer talks about you

A new Windows 11 computer says a lot about you. It tells Microsoft which apps you open and how long you spend in them, what you type into the Start menu search, and it carries an advertising ID that follows you from one app to the next. Your browser does much the same for Google. The maker of your laptop, the maker of your graphics card, sometimes even your mouse software, each have their own little programs that phone home. None of this is needed for your computer to work.

Vigie Lab switches these off one by one, and tells you each time what you would lose (usually nothing). Three levels are ready to go: Careful, Balanced and Maximum. If you would rather decide everything yourself, you can set each line by hand. And when a big Windows update quietly turns something back on, which does happen, Vigie Lab notices and offers to turn it off again.

Nothing goes out without your say

This is the heart of Vigie Lab. Once monitoring is on, any program that wants to reach the Internet for the first time has to ask you first. A small window tells you what it is, who made it, and often what we recommend. You allow it or block it, and your choice is remembered. Windows updates and your antivirus get through without bothering you.

A world map then shows which countries your data goes to, and which programs send it there. Another screen shows which programs used your microphone or camera, or captured your screen, and when. If you like, a horn sounds as soon as the microphone or camera comes on.

Today's scams, stopped before you click

From the Complete edition up.

Scammers rarely break into computers these days. They fool the person in front of them. Vigie Lab knows their tricks and steps in at the right moment:

• the fake "I'm not a robot" box that asks you to paste a command into Windows: Vigie Lab wipes the command and stops you;
• the fake technician on the phone who gets you to install AnyDesk or TeamViewer;
• the fake "Help Desk" who messages you on Teams after flooding your inbox with emails, to take control of the computer;
• the password thief that silences your antivirus or quietly grabs administrator rights;
• the email with a forged sender, the reply that would go to a different address, the request to change bank details (in Thunderbird, Foxmail and Mailspring);
• the attachment that launches a program as soon as you open it;
• the USB stick that pretends to be a keyboard and types commands on its own, faster than any human could;
• the fake hotel or café Wi-Fi that uses the name of a network you know;
• the unknown program that reads the passwords saved in your browser: it is cut off from the Internet on the spot.

Sites known to spread malware, and the ad networks that follow you from site to site, are blocked for the whole computer, not just in the browser. Vigie Lab also flags software its publisher no longer updates, sites that push fake "virus detected" alerts at you, and any suspicious change to your connection settings.

When something looks off, the toolbox is there. It checks a text message or a link without opening it, looks into a dodgy email from any mail service, and tells you whether a password has already leaked. It can also erase a document for good, and strip the location from your photos before you send them.

Payment mode, to pay with peace of mind

This is the fake bank adviser trick: on the phone, they rush you, get you to install a "security" program and guide you while you make the transfer. Before you open your bank's website, press "I'm making a payment", on Vigie Lab's home screen or in the menu of its small icon near the clock. For 20 minutes, a banner reminds you what your bank will never ask: to install software, to read out a code received by text message, or to make a "security" transfer. If a remote-control program opens, a large window warns you straight away and offers to close it.

Nothing is closed without your click. Vigie Lab doesn't read your pages or your windows: it only looks at which programs are running.

In every edition.

Ransomware, spotted early

From the Complete edition up.

Ransomware scrambles your documents, then demands money to give them back. Vigie Lab places a few small decoy files, hidden, in your Documents, Desktop and Pictures folders. Their content never changes: if a program alters them, it is busy damaging your files. Vigie Lab warns you within seconds, and names the program when Windows allows it. After spending a week learning your computer's normal pace, it also spots an unusual number of files changing at the same time, or all suddenly taking on an unknown extension.

The best defence is still a recent backup, on a drive you unplug afterwards. Vigie Lab tells you whether you have one, how old it is, and whether the drive stays plugged in all the time (ransomware would reach it too). It shows the "previous versions" Windows keeps of your files, creates one in a click, and alerts you if they all vanish at once: that is what ransomware does just before it strikes.

Vigie Lab doesn't move, rename or change any of your files. It cannot undo encryption and doesn't replace your antivirus: it raises the alarm early, so you can act before it is too late.

Windows, locked down

From the Complete edition up.

Windows keeps doors open that attackers know by heart: an old file-sharing protocol, USB sticks that launch a program on their own, passwords kept readable in memory. Vigie Lab closes them with the settings recommended by Microsoft and by ANSSI, the French national cybersecurity agency, arranged in three levels. The Essential level suits almost everyone. The Reinforced and Maximum levels go further, and spell out their consequences before you choose them. Every setting keeps its previous value and can be undone in one click. If something undoes it behind your back, Vigie Lab puts it back and tells you.

• drive encryption: Vigie Lab tells you whether a stolen computer would give away your files, and opens the right Windows page to encrypt it (it never switches anything on itself and never touches a key);
• repeated password attempts: when someone on the network keeps trying passwords to get into the computer, you are warned;
• administrator accounts: an alert as soon as a new account is given full rights over the computer;
• with Microsoft Defender, the rules that close the most common attack paths (an Office document launching a program, password theft, booby-trapped scripts), in observation mode first;
• the fake keyboard: a device that has just been plugged in and types faster than any human triggers a red alert. Vigie Lab only measures the speed, never what is typed.

A lighter computer that lasts longer

A slow PC doesn't always need replacing. Often it is just carrying too much: programs that start with Windows, apps installed at the factory, leftovers from updates, forgotten or duplicate files. Vigie Lab measures first, shows you what it suggests removing and how much space you will get back, then cleans up with your agreement. It never touches Windows system files, doesn't "clean" the registry, and doesn't promise memory miracles.

Five modes (3D, video, drawing, gaming, video calls) give full power to the software you are using, then put everything back to normal. The Health tab keeps an eye on your drives, temperature and battery wear: if a drive shows signs of failing, you are warned in time to back up your files.

The big clean-up and startup control come with every edition; modes, PC health, duplicates and the rest from the Complete edition up.

You stay in charge

Vigie Lab suggests, you decide. Before its first changes, it creates a Windows restore point. Everything it does is written to a history, and almost everything can be undone in one click, right up to the "Put everything back as it was" button. It doesn't replace your antivirus and never touches it: it works alongside.

Every screen has its own help, in plain words. Right-click almost any line and it tells you what that line means.

What happens on your PC stays on your PC

Vigie Lab only goes online for your licence, to find out once a day whether there is a new version (you can turn this off), and to check a password with the tool made for that, when you ask (only a small piece of its fingerprint is sent, which cannot be turned back into the password). No account to create, no cloud, no usage statistics. The emails, links and text messages you ask it to check are examined on your computer and nowhere else.

For companies and public bodies

The Business edition protects every workstation with the same rules, which employees cannot undo. The person in charge follows each computer from a dashboard and prints reports for the insurer, an audit, NIS 2, ISO 27001 or GDPR. It adds protection against fake bank details and CEO fraud, and one exercise a month: a harmless fake phishing message, so people learn to spot the real ones.

It hardens the workstations: USB sticks and programs under control, stronger Windows settings everywhere, Vigie Lab protected against being stopped. A workstation hit by ransomware can be cut off from the network, and a "red plan" prepared in advance puts the whole fleet into strict mode. When a workstation is in danger, the computer of the person in charge is alerted within a minute, even without Internet. Everything goes through a shared folder on the company's own server or NAS. Nothing goes to the cloud.

Designed in Bergues

Vigie Lab is designed and developed in Bergues, in northern France, by FFSMC. Support replies in English or French within two working days, at [email protected].

System requirements

• Windows 11, 64-bit
• A Windows account allowed to install software
• An Internet connection to activate the licence, or a USB stick for a computer that isn't connected to the Internet
• For the "Misleading links" extension: Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave, Vivaldi or Opera (one-click install from the official Chrome, Edge or Firefox store)

The four editions

Each edition includes everything in the one before.

Subscription and free trial

Each licence is a one-year subscription for one computer, updates included. Before you buy, try Vigie Lab free for 7 days with every feature: download the program further down, under "Download". After payment, your licence key arrives by email, with a link to download the program. Paste it into Vigie Lab, Settings, "Licence" card. For several computers, just choose the quantity in your cart: each licence has its own key.

Installation

Download "Install Vigie Lab" under "Download", then double-click the file. Windows asks for permission to install: the verified publisher shown is Christophe Queyroi, the founder of FFSMC. The program is digitally signed, which guarantees it has not been changed since it left the workshop.

Frequently asked questions

Can I try it before I buy?
Yes. Download the program under "Download" on this page. Once installed, Vigie Lab runs for 7 days with every feature unlocked. After that it asks for a licence key. Whatever it has already set stays in place, and the "Put everything back as it was" button is always there.

How does buying work?
After payment, you get your licence key by email, with a link to download the program. Your keys and downloads also stay in your account on ffsmc.fr, under "My licences". Then just paste the key into Vigie Lab's Settings.

I have several computers.
You need one licence per computer: just choose the quantity in your cart.

I'm changing computers.
On the old one, click "Release this computer" on the Licence card in Settings. Your key can then be used on the new one.

My computer isn't connected to the Internet.
Vigie Lab can still be activated. On the “License” card in Settings, click “Activate without Internet”: Vigie Lab gives you a request code. On another device that is online, open your account on ffsmc.fr, under "My licences", and enter that code. You get an activation code to type in, or an activation file to carry over on a USB stick. With the Business edition, a single file covers every workstation.

What happens after a year?
Nothing breaks. What Vigie Lab has set stays in place and the protection keeps running. You just stop getting new versions, which bring new defences and updated lists of traps. Renew to get them back.

Does Vigie Lab protect against ransomware?
It raises the alarm early, from the Complete edition up: hidden decoy files in your documents, too many files changing at once, Windows previous versions all deleted together. It also tells you whether your backup is recent and safe. It cannot undo encryption and doesn't replace your antivirus. In the Business edition, the affected workstation can also be cut off from the network, to protect the others.

What is the "I'm making a payment" button for?
To pay online without falling for the fake bank adviser. Press it before you open your bank's website: for 20 minutes, Vigie Lab reminds you what your bank will never ask, and warns you at once if a remote-control program opens. Nothing is closed without your agreement. It is in every edition.

Does the Business edition go through a cloud?
No. No cloud, no server to buy, no online console: a simple shared folder, on your server or NAS, holds the rules, the alerts and the status of each workstation. FFSMC receives nothing from your computers. Workstations that are never connected to the Internet are protected too.

Does Vigie Lab replace my antivirus?
No, it works alongside it. Keep Microsoft Defender or the antivirus you paid for: Vigie Lab never touches it.

Could it damage Windows?
No. Vigie Lab doesn't touch security updates, your antivirus or Windows system files. Before making changes, it creates a restore point. Every change is logged, and almost everything can be undone in one click.

Does Vigie Lab send my data anywhere?
No. It only goes online for your licence, to find out once a day whether there is a new version (you can turn this off), and to check a password when you ask it to. There is no account, no cloud and no usage statistics.

Does Vigie Lab read my emails?
It looks at new messages in Thunderbird, Foxmail and Mailspring for traps, on your computer, without changing or keeping them. Nothing leaves your PC, and you can turn this protection off in one click.

Does it work on Windows 10, Mac or Linux?
Vigie Lab is made for 64-bit Windows 11. There is no Mac or Linux version.

Which languages?
English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Polish and Brazilian Portuguese. You can change the language in Settings.

We are a town hall or a non-profit.
The Business edition is made for you. For a quote or a purchase order, write to [email protected].

How do I get help?
Write to [email protected]. We reply within two working days. If something isn't right, attach the diagnostic report: Settings, "Diagnostic report" card, "Create the report" button. It contains no passwords, no documents and no browsing history.

Windows says "Windows protected your PC".
This blue message can appear for a program that has not been downloaded much yet, even a signed one. Click "More info" and check that the publisher shown is Christophe Queyroi, then click "Run anyway". If the publisher is unknown or has another name, stop there and write to us: it would not be our file.

How do I update Vigie Lab?
Vigie Lab tells you itself when a new version comes out: a notification appears near the clock, and one click on "Install" is enough. Before installing anything, it checks that the version really carries FFSMC's signature, and your settings are kept. You can also download it from "My licences", choose "Extract all" on the compressed folder, then install it from Settings, "Install an update from a file".

FFSMC™ and Vigie Lab™ are trademarks filed with the French INPI (no. 5318767 and no. 5318773).