Today, when so much importance is attached to the efficiency and performance of our operating systems, having tools that help keep our facilities in optimal condition seems essential. In this sense, CCleaner has been a popular solution to keep your Windows clean ‘of dust and chaff’. Let’s review what CCleaner is, how it works, and what benefits it can offer users and their PCs.
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What is CCleaner and what is it for?
CCleaner, an acronym for “Crap Cleaner” (literally, “junk cleaner”), is a program developed by the Piriform company for Windows systems (later, also for Mac and Android), designed with the purpose of optimizing the Registry and cleaning the system of unnecessary and obsolete files.
Since its release in 2003, CCleaner has grown in popularity due to its ability to improve system performance and free up hard drive space, all from within. a very easy to use interface.
CCleaner’s main tool is cleaning temporary files, cache, browsing histories, cookies and other items that can slow down the system over time. By scanning and removing these outdated files, the program helps keep your computer running smoothly.
In addition to cleaning, CCleaner offers other key features:
- Cleaning the Windows Registry: The program examines and removes incorrect or unusable registry entries that could affect system performance.
- Uninstalling programs: CCleaner allows you to uninstall applications in a more complete way, eliminating traces and residual files. Another section will also allow us to update the installed programs.
- Startup management: The user can decide which programs start automatically with Windows, optimizing the boot time of the system.
- System Restore: The user can manage the System Restore Points created from Windows, loading or deleting them.
- Management of browser extensions: The user can delete, deactivate and activate from CCleaner each extension of his web browser.
- Search for duplicates: In many cases, one of the things that causes us to lose the most hard disk space is duplicate files. CCleaner includes a function that will allow us to use various variables to refine the search.
- Secure Data Erase: CCleaner has secure deletion functions, which allow data to be deleted in such a way that it cannot be recovered, preserving privacy.
- Driver update: The Pro (paid) version of CCleaner offers the ability to scan and update outdated drivers to keep your system up to date. The free version only shows you which ones you have outdated.
CCleaner problems
However, CCleaner started generating negative headlines in 2017, after Avast (the developer of the eponymous antivirus) acquired Piriform. That same year, users discovered that CCleaner had started collecting system information, supposedly for diagnostic purposes.
Unfortunately, this controversy coincided in time with another even more serious one, when it was discovered that the program had been hacked: the installer from its official website was replaced by another manipulated one that introduced spyware in 2 million Windows installations.
While privacy concerns are solvable, simply deactivating three options in the program settings (see the following image), and the problem of the infected software was finally solved, for some users the reputation of the once applauded CCleaner fell apart.
It’s legit, but the latest editions haven’t introduced any new problems: if you thought CCleaner was useful software 8 years ago, you will still find it useful today.
If, despite everything, you continue to distrust, Don’t worry, there are alternatives. (increasingly popular, moreover), such as the open source and cross-platform application BleachBit, or the recently launched PC Manager, created by Microsoft itself for Windows 10/11. Or maybe you don’t need any specific program.
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