I used the Software Updater included in Avast today for the first time. It updated Skype, 7Zip and Foxit Reader. But if I’m not wrong, Foxit Reader offers to install ad/spy-ware during installation. Does Avast make sure it unticks the box that asks for spyware to be installed? I’m a bit worried now.
avast does not untick any opt-outs. The fact is avast uses opt-outs.
Try using Unchecky.
It’s quite handy and most of us use it. Unchecky will untick “opt-outs” for you.
avast is not “unticking” anything, that is for the user to do.
Foxit Reader came with OpenCandy which installed the browser-hijacking malware Conduit.
Complaints and reaction from Foxit on their own webboard: http://tinyurl.com/qhnbo7g
One of the moderators (who seems to work for Foxit):
We sincerely apologize for this inconvenience. I'll forward your feedback and experience to our market development team for references and evaluating. PUP means Potentially Unwanted Products.Let's see. OpenCandy is not just a pup. It is advertising software and therefore (in my opinion) malware. It installs (or installed) Conduit which is a browser hijacker which is definably malware.
They claim that they have removed all “crapware” in version 6.2.1
If that is true, I don’t know.
I am not using it.
Personally I use Nitro PDF.
Small, works as I want, free, nothing comes bundled with it.
Oh shit, then I am in trouble. Avast installed everything in the background for me without offering me the chance to untick the boxes myself. Shit shit shit, this is the first and the last time I used the Software Updater.
Eh, no.
It is not avast’s fault but your own.
The software update just says “There is a newer version of the Foxit Reader”.
And that is true.
avast didn’t installed the Foxit Reader, you did.
Nothing more, nothing less.
I suggest you remove Foxit Reader and follow these instructions:
https://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=53253.0
No, no, there was a button that said ‘Update’, I clicked it and without warning avast said: Downloading… then it said Installing… all without asking me anything. I thought it was just going to run the installer and give me the control to see what’s installing but it did all of this by itself without warning me.
As I said before.
It is you who installed Foxit Reader, not avast.
It is you who clicked on “update”, not avast.
The software updater just checks a installed version and checks if there is a newer version.
If there is a newer version, the software updater lets you know.
If you click update, the installer/updater for the new version is downloaded and run.
If you can change things during the update is not up to avast but how the installer/updater is programmed.