CCleaner

dipsomaniac

How many people use 4 different browsers and need to clean their browsing history (best done with there own tools imo)??

What can ccleaner do that windows or your browser can't?

neilmcl

dipsomaniac said:

How many people use 4 different browsers and need to clean their browsing history (best done with there own tools imo)??

What can ccleaner do that windows or your browser can't?

I use 3, Chrome, Edge and Firefox. As mentioned Ccleaner gives me the convenience of being able to fully and securely clear and delete the browser cache over all browsers as well as doing other cleanup tasks.

inspectorperez

https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/stop-using-ccleaner-windows/

The above link takes you to an article written by Ben Stegner (respected computer journalist) in November 2019.

I am not a techie by any means, but this article certainly made me sit up and take notice.

As I mentioned in a previous post on this topic, I uninstalled CCleaner and now use windows own tools, although I do admit I occasionally download it run it and then uninstall again followed by a Malwarebytes scan.

It may be perfectly okay now, but I am afraid it's now off limits for me as a permanent tool.

Biggus_Dickus

dipsomaniac said:

How many people use 4 different browsers and need to clean their browsing history (best done with there own tools imo)??

What can ccleaner do that windows or your browser can't?

It subtly coerces you to part with cash for ‘Pro’ additions. 

fenlander_uk

For starters, it seems to remove the content of your posts on this forum...

CoastingHatbox

CCleaner is a monolithic tool with its tentacles everywhere.

Monolithic tools are very difficult to test properly.

It is no doubt dependent on a number of APIs to support its functionality, unless it is ignoring APIs and manipulating underlying data on disk directly. We have no idea because it is closed source and proprietary. This adds a further level of complexity and unpredictability.

You only have to look at the number of recent Windows updates which have been problematic because antivirus developers have used Windows APIs in ways which they were never intended to be used to see why this monolothic piece of software that does lots of different things can easily fall into the trap of causing as many or more problems than it solves.

Add CCleaner's historical problems with malware and data collection to the mix, I reach the point where I cannot in good conscience recommend it. Especially when Windows 10 does not need this kind of optimisation.

I reccomend the sysinternals suite because, they are build for professionals by professionals. They don't collect data. Each of the tools does one job, and does it well. They don't need to be installed so they don't really have a footprint, etc. etc..
There is nothing esoteric about them.

Firefox can be configured never to save browsing history. There at least used to be extensions for Chrome/Chromium* to do the same thing. The hardship of hitting <ctrl>+<shift>+<delete> when I want to clear a browsers history has never really made me think about going to find a tool to do the job for me.

*If you do install an extension to give your web browser amnesia, check the reviews and the reputation of the developer as you should with any browser extension. A dodgy browser extension can be used for all sorts of nefarious things, like capturing credit card details as you type them into web form. They are one of the leading ways to compromise end users right now.

pbartlett

Edge and Chrome can, I believe, be configured to delete history, cookies on browser exit.

I use CCleaner 5.30 portable ie the Piriform version not Avast and don't allow it to update

Biggus_Dickus

neilmcl said:

dipsomaniac said:

How many people use 4 different browsers and need to clean their browsing history (best done with there own tools imo)??

What can ccleaner do that windows or your browser can't?

I use 3, Chrome, Edge and Firefox. As mentioned Ccleaner gives me the convenience of being able to fully and securely clear and delete the browser cache over all browsers as well as doing other cleanup tasks.

That's just showing off.