My Falcon w/ Mach-e

[Skyman63]

Forscan is a widely used software program to allow you to adjust certain aspects of a Ford vehicle. A search of this forum would produce numerous references to people using it to modify their Mach e’s. If you search any forum about any Ford vehicle, you will see references to it. It’s been around for many years, probably decades. You don’t load it onto your car, just your pc. There’s probably a better chance for a nefarious app on your phone to hack your car than Forscan doing it, if that’s the concern. However, you can brick your car, any Ford, not just a Mach e, if you don't know what you’re doing. So it’s not a tool for the faint of heart or the inexperienced driveway mechanic.

It’s useful because it lets you modify things the Ford software will not, and do things like roll back firmware to previous versions. I’ve used it to add back the hands free lift-gate on a 22 Mach e, and rollback the BECM firmware on my 2017 C-Max after the newly installed HVB battery pack would not function with the most recent firmware.

It is free, but to access some of the more advanced features, like loading firmware, you need the paid license. Since the developer is in Russia, there is no way to pay them currently due to sanctions.

Sponsored

 

[Jimrpa]

As I previously noted, it is not a software change. It just a program so I can change the vehicle settings. Apparently the FORScan program was terminated for sale strictly to Russia via PayPal.

My personal preference is not to use Russian software and I can’t think of a single instance when I’ve voluntarily done so (well, does playing Tetris in the ‘80s count?)
Note: I also wouldn’t use Iranian, North Korean, or Cuban software, among others. And I prefer not to use Chinese software as much as possible (although I’m required to for my dish washer. On the other hand, it’s highly unlikely that my dishwasher can kill or maim many people in a roadway “accident”, and the leakage of personal information via my dishwasher is pretty minimal.)

 

[Jimrpa]

Forscan is a widely used software program to allow you to adjust certain aspects of a Ford vehicle. A search of this forum would produce numerous references to people using it to modify their Mach e’s. If you search any forum about any Ford vehicle, you will see references to it. It’s been around for many years, probably decades. You don’t load it onto your car, just your pc. There’s probably a better chance for a nefarious app on your phone to hack your car than Forscan doing it, if that’s the concern. However, you can brick your car, any Ford, not just a Mach e, if you don't know what you’re doing. So it’s not a tool for the faint of heart or the inexperienced driveway mechanic.

It’s useful because it lets you modify things the Ford software will not, and do things like roll back firmware to previous versions. I’ve used it to add back the hands free lift-gate on a 22 Mach e, and rollback the BECM firmware on my 2017 C-Max after the newly installed HVB battery pack would not function with the most recent firmware.

It is free, but to access some of the more advanced features, like loading firmware, you need the paid license. Since the developer is in Russia, there is no way to pay them currently due to sanctions.

Sigh… if I’m a hostile foreign power and I wanted to impact the general population (or even a subset of the general population) of my adversaries, of course I'm going to build a program that is going to look attractive and safe to use. Witness tik tok, or DeepSeek, or pagers in the Middle East if you prefer. We’ve seen so many examples of malevolent nation states packaging and distributing malware under the guise of “useful” or “helpful”.

if it’s truly that useful and long-lived, why isn’t there an open-source version that people can use and that independent experts can examine? And possibly, the target isn’t your car, but perhaps your computer?

 

[Skyman63]

We have a car with a gps connection, thats online 24/7 as long as it has a cell signal, and is set up to get over the air updates. What about FordPass? Another entry into the car’s electronics from an outside internet sever.

I understand your point, but there are numerous ways a bad guy can access a car’s electronics. I don't see Forscan, given its incident free usage for many years by millions of people, as any more risky than anything else.

Sponsored