![]() ![]() non-transparently testing out CCleaner on end-users). ![]() So far, the developers have kept mum on how the above hiding & un-hiding act is effected (ie. You can block the above web domains using the Windows HOSTS file or a firewall, but this is akin to a whack-a-mole exercise, since Piriform/AVAST can change the URLs at will.Īlso from v () onwards, CCleaner upon every launch auto adds (& re-adds) additional “whitelisted” cookies to keep:ģ) Furthermore, users have complained about sections of “experimental” features mysteriously appearing, disappearing & re-appearing in CCleaner’s GUI between launches, even though they have not updated CCleaner, & the file hashes of the main binaries ( CCleaner.exe, CCleaner64.exe) remain unchanged. Note:- For each version, identical CCleaner.exe & CCleaner64.exe binaries are used for the 3 respective builds from the developer: “Standard” (PUP-bundled) installer, “Slim” (no PUPs) installer, as well as the Portable ZIP archive.Īs such, if CCleaner binaries were to be again tainted at source - ala the Floxif/Nyetya backdoor trojan supply-chain hack (which Piriform, AVAST & practically all malware scanners failed to detect) - ccPortable PAF would be equally compromised as well.Ģ) As for data mining & user privacy issues, CCleaner from v (released: ) onwards is known to connect to various URLs during its runtime, such as:ĬCleaner sends info such as the user’s IP address, ISP name, GPS coordinates, city/country, timezone, CCleaner launch timestamps, views, button clicks, types of junk cleaned from system, other running apps when CCleaner is is use, etc. The wrapper happens to extract the binaries contained in the “Standard” installer build from the developer. ![]() Nearly 400,000 subscribers received the newsletter complete with a handwritten tip every day.Daraghy: “How does the use of ccPortable address the issues of data user collection and bundling that tainted cCleaner to begin with for many of us?”ġ) ccPortable PAF does NOT prevent user data mining by the recent versions of CCleaner, because the PAF wrapper does not modify the binaries obtained from source. He gave advice on dark web scans on Miami's NBC 6, discussed Windows XP's demise on WGN-TV's Midday News in Chicago, and shared his CES experiences on WJR-AM's Guy Gordon Show in Detroit.Ĭhris also ran MakeUseOf's email newsletter for two years. In addition to his extensive writing experience, Chris has been interviewed as a technology expert on TV news and radio shows. The company's project was later reportedly shut down by the U.S. A wave of negative publicity ensued, with coverage on BuzzFeed News, CNBC, the BBC, and TechCrunch. At CES 2018, he broke the news about Kodak's "KashMiner" Bitcoin mining scheme with a viral tweet. Starting in 2015, Chris attended the Computer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas for five years running. His work has even appeared on the front page of Reddit.Īrticles he's written have been used as a source for everything from books like Team Human by Douglas Rushkoff, media theory professor at the City University of New York's Queens College and CNN contributor, to university textbooks and even late-night TV shows like Comedy Central's with Chris Hardwick. His roundups of new features in Windows 10 updates have been called "the most detailed, useful Windows version previews of anyone on the web" and covered by prominent Windows journalists like Paul Thurrott and Mary Jo Foley on TWiT's Windows Weekly. Instructional tutorials he's written have been linked to by organizations like The New York Times, Wirecutter, Lifehacker, the BBC, CNET, Ars Technica, and John Gruber's Daring Fireball. The news he's broken has been covered by outlets like the BBC, The Verge, Slate, Gizmodo, Engadget, TechCrunch, Digital Trends, ZDNet, The Next Web, and Techmeme. Beyond the column, he wrote about everything from Windows to tech travel tips. He founded PCWorld's "World Beyond Windows" column, which covered the latest developments in open-source operating systems like Linux and Chrome OS. He also wrote the USA's most-saved article of 2021, according to Pocket.Ĭhris was a PCWorld columnist for two years. Beyond the web, his work has appeared in the print edition of The New York Times (September 9, 2019) and in PCWorld's print magazines, specifically in the August 2013 and July 2013 editions, where his story was on the cover. With over a decade of writing experience in the field of technology, Chris has written for a variety of publications including The New York Times, Reader's Digest, IDG's PCWorld, Digital Trends, and MakeUseOf. Chris has personally written over 2,000 articles that have been read more than one billion times-and that's just here at How-To Geek. Chris Hoffman is the former Editor-in-Chief of How-To Geek. ![]()
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