Junk Offender: Speed Up My PC Free
Jonathan Parkyn puts the boot into tech villains, jargonspouting companies and software stuffed with junk
Junk offender: Speed Up My PC Free
When a tool has the word ‘free’ in its name, that usually means it shouldn’t cost anything, right? Well, try telling that to the people behind Speed Up My PC Free ( www.speedupmypcfree.com) –a program so bad, that its poorly chosen name is actually the least of its problems.
You could be forgiven for thinking otherwise, given all the seemingly glowing testimonials plastered around the tool’s web page, but – make no mistake – this software is so dreadful on so many levels, that I’m genuinely not sure where to start.
Download and install Speed Up My PC Free and you’ll eventually discover that Speed Up My PC Free isn’t even called Speed Up My PC Free. It’s easy to miss until it’s too late, but the site actually tricks you into installing a program called Advanced System Repair Pro instead.
The ‘Setup Wizzard’ (sic) includes pre-ticked boxes that will allow the software to run the program in the background whenever your PC starts and perform unspecified ‘scheduled tasks’ if you’re not careful (see screenshot). If you don’t untick these options, you’ll also unwittingly agree to let the program makers analyse your usage data.
Once installed, the tool will spam you with warnings about non-existent malware, privacy issues, system errors and other made-up rubbish. Clicking ‘Fix Issues Now’ launches a web page where you’ll unhappily discover that the ‘free’ software you installed isn’t free at all. In fact, it costs a socking £24 every three months to fix all the fictitious problems it has discovered on your PC.
Running a scan with Adwcleaner reveals that the tool has installed no less than 21 PUPS on your PC. A quick trip to Trustpilot ( www.snipca.com/34775) reveals that those glowing reviews – like everything else about this program – are totally fake.