Power Query and .xls files on Office 365 version 2602

After the update it seems that i can't load .xls files in Power Query anymore.
When i test with a simple .xls file and try to load it, I get this error:

Unable to connect We encountered an error while trying to connect
Details: "We can't load data from this source due to its type of protection, or you may not have permission to extract data."

I've tested on another computer which is on version 2601 and it loads fine.
GPTs telling me that M$ deprecated .xls because it's often a malware vector
Is there a workaround?
I got many suggestions, as to add .xls in trust center or right-click on the file and remove protections, etc. But still doesn't work, even with the files
Did they just broke the functionality and trying to mask it as a protection/permission/security..