#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS INSTALL#
#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS WINDOWS 10#
#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE#
#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS PLUS#
#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS DOWNLOAD#

We would still recommend CCleaner to anyone who wants to give their computer a thorough cleaning of unneeded files, cookies and other system-cloggers.

#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS DOWNLOAD#

This is par for the course for many programs on the market, but not for CCleaner, which predates many of the most popular security programs you can download today.

Ever since Avast took over management, the app has also been accused of collecting user data when it previously did not. Tap or click here for an app that will spot fine print gotchas for you.īut that’s not the only thing CCleaner has gotten flack for. If you don’t want this to happen, you’ll have to opt-out by clicking Decline during setup. During the initial setup, if you don’t pay attention to fine print, all of these apps will be automatically installed on your device. But Microsoft objects to the somewhat shady way they’re presented to you. These programs themselves, like CCleaner, aren’t malicious at all.

#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS PLUS#

Since then, the company has started bundling CCleaner with a suite of other security programs - including Google Chrome browser, Google Toolbar, and Avast Free Antivirus plus AVG Antivirus Free. Fortunately, the truth is nowhere near that bad and has everything to do with CCleaner’s new management.īack in 2017, CCleaner was purchased by Avast, an antivirus developer.

#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS WINDOWS 10#

This put quite a bit of fear into ordinary Windows 10 users, who may have mistaken their trusty system cleaner (one that we recommend, no less) as a potentially dangerous piece of software. Microsoft puts the kibosh on CCleanerĪccording to Bleeping Computer from late July of this year, Windows Defender has been flagging the acclaimed CCleaner tool as “potentially unwanted software” during downloads and scans. Is CCleaner suddenly dangerous for users to install? As it turns out, it all comes down to whether or not you like extra bundled software.

#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS INSTALL#

Tap or click here to find out more about CCleaner.ĬCleaner is highly popular for routine computer maintenance, but recently, Microsoft has been urging users not to install the program through its Windows Defender system. This handy tool gives you the inside scoop on what’s happening inside your hard drive and will help you partition and delete what you no longer need. It’s hard enough keeping malware and spyware away from your computer as it is, so why make things more difficult by having to pay for such essential tools?Īnd when it comes to system cleaners, one of our all-time favorites is CCleaner. 'Attackers have shown that they are willing to leverage this trust to distribute malware while remaining undetected.At, we’re crazy about free tools you can use to keep your system clean. 'This is a prime example of the extent that attackers are willing to go through in their attempt to distribute malware to organizations and individuals around the world,' Cisco Talos warns.

#CCLEANER ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE#

Once they are in, it's a case of loading the trusted software with a nefarious payload, with the end-user being none the wiser. The trend now, however, is to attack the download source directly and gain access to legitimate servers. In the past, attackers would create fake alternatives of popular applications and trick people into downloading them. The Petya ransomware was distributed via a similar method and hackers also modified the Mac Bittorrent app Transmission on official servers to compromise users' computers. The attack vector isn't a new one, but it's become a lot more prevalent in recent months. 'By exploiting the trust relationship between software vendors and the users of their software, attackers can benefit from users' inherent trust in the files and web servers used to distribute updates,' said Cisco Talos researchers, who discovered the threat, in a blog post. Users trust the brand, which makes it a prime target for attackers. Starting life as a 'crap cleaner,' CCleaner has earned a reputation for its ability to remove rogue programs and clear things like tracking cookies on Windows PCs. The company said it has already forced updates of the affected version and in its own words was 'able to disarm the threat before it was able to do any harm.' The impact is damaging, but considering that the application has amassed over 2 billion downloads and adds around 5 million new users each month, it could have been significantly worse. Piriform's CCleaner, owned by antivirus provider Avast, was found to be hosting a 'multi-stage malware payload' that could install ransomware or keyloggers and further infect target computers on command.Īccording to Avast, around 2.27 million people ran the affected software, which was delivered via a hacked server. A popular PC-cleaning software used by over 130 million people put users at risk after hackers were able to insert malware into legitimate downloads.

Ccleaner antivirus