Avast on my wife's computer

[nalo89]

Am I cracking up? A couple of weeks ago I setup my wife's desktop but did not install avast free at that time although I loaded an earlier version in readiness. Tonight at 11.55 pm the latest version of Avast was installed on her computer but not by me. Did Avast install it?

[midnight]

Avast doesn't install by it's self.

[nalo89]

There was only an earlier version in a Master storage folder ready for me to install but I did not do so. I was contemplating doing it soon but have been relying on the the built in Windows Defender. I setup my wife's new computer at least two weeks ago. I checked the date and time of the folder of the latest version of Avast Free and it said 16/11/2017 at 11.55 pm. So what enabled the download and install. I became aware when the icon appeared on the taskbar. I clicked on it and was informed to restart the computer. The registration stated 29 days left. I have been using Avast Free in various versions on three home computers for a number of years and have never had this occurrence. 

[midnight]

Maybe some one else in your family installed it.

[REDACTED]

+1 midnight
Or
you installed a software that is bundled with avast(piggyback)

[nalo89]

Hi steampunk852, The only thing I did prior to seeing Avast free was to install the latest free version of CCleaner and run a registry clean only with a backup saving. I also have Unchecky installed which kicks in when an install tries to add stuff I do not want. I never install stuff from sources other that the original site. I already have CCleaner on the other two computers and when CCleaner informs of an update I do so direct from Piriform as to do so through the program would download the update through Filehippo. Filehippo may be a pukka source but I still use the original source. I am not perturbed by the Avast install as I was going to do that myself but just wondered how it was not done by me. My wife does not know anything about computers so I deal with those aspects. 

[Cluster-Lizard2014]

Just a guess:-

It might not have install by itself but it, probably, updated from the "earlier version". If it was not the offline installer of whatever version that was, as I understand it, AVAST downloads and installs the latest version.

You might not even have noticed this as the version of AVAST that was displayed would most likely not have changed until the system rebooted.

Alternatively it was the CCleaner install that did it as now, apparently, that includes a pre-ticked AVAST installer. Unchecky should have dealt with that but there have been issues with CCleaner this year were several versions have ignored other user settings despite them being unticked.  So that is a possible explanation. 

[nalo89]

Hello Cluster-Lizard2014, now that sounds feasible although the earlier version was not installed but was in a master storage folder in Documents ready for me to do so. Just another thought hit me this morning, that being that as Avast took over PiriForm did they put a hook in CCleaner and would that have installed the latest version without me doing so.

[nalo89]

Hi Cluster-Lizard2014, I have just seen HayC59's start subject with the same query so mine is not the only query about Avast Free being hooked to CCleaner.
Another thing re my install of CCleaner is that I used the custom install function and was not aware there was an Avast hook attached. This was due to the install on my laptop and desktop on which Avast Free was already installed and it seems the hook is not there under this condition. Reading the comments attached to HayC59's entry in which others had attached CCleaner's install page it has given me great relief as it proves my nearly 82 year brain has not developed a Senior Moment where I had installed Avast and did not remember doing so.