Hutch's Blog

MyCleanPC (Registry Cleaner)
by Cyberdefender

I had seen these commercials for some time now so I thought it was time to put it to the test.  MyCleanPC is a so-called 'registry cleaner' that tries to pass itself off as a be-all end-all computer utility that will speed up your system.  The commercial even implies that it handles viruses but that's actually another marginal Cyberdefender product that has an additional cost.

The test system:

The test system consisted of an old Dell Latitude D505 with 2GB of RAM and running Windows XP Pro.  The XP installation was brand new with ALL current updates performed.  A top-notch antivirus program, Kaspersky Internet Security 2012, was installed and updated.  Prior to installing the MyCleanPC program, we downloaded, installed and ran CCleaner to remove any unneeded registry entries.

Installing the product:

We launched the installer for MyCleanPC from their website following the instructions provided.  Kaspersky immediately alerted that the program was trying to gain access to critical registry functions.  Since this was being installed on a test system we told Kaspersky to trust the process and proceed.

Running the product:

When you allow MyCleanPC to run, it opens a progress window that tells you how far you are into its tests.  The window also has a large ad at the top with an “800” phone number for “activating” the product.  Once it finished it alerted us to 199 errors of various levels of importance, all negligible.

Coming in for the kill:

The result window contains two large buttons toward the bottom of the window.  “Activate Now” and “Fix All Errors and Speed Up your PC!”.  The “Fix All Errors” button takes you to the MyCleanPC website where the manufacturers ask for $39.98 for their product.  The “Activate Now” button takes you to an activation window where you insert the activation code you receive when you’ve paid for it.

Uninstall:

This is the best feature of their product.  It’s actually useful once you get past the nag screens that attempt to talk you out of uninstalling and even offers it FREE through other software installations such as RealPlayer, etc.  The other good thing is that it’s only scareware in its most tame form.  A marginally legitimate product that uninstalls itself to a mostly clean state (doesn’t remove the directory in the Program Files folder.)

In our opinion:

The trial they offer is worthless as it fails to actually demonstrate it's cleaning functions.  The functions that MyCleanPC performs could likely be handled as well or better with any of the FREE programs available, CCleaner for example.  Cyberdefender isn't going to correct any of the problems it claims to find unless you pay them for this marginal vaporware.  If you really want to give away money we would suggest you spend it on a needy family that could use an extra meal or two.  Both you and your computer will feel better as a result.  If you do any research on this product you’ll find that many reputable computer websites have a similar bad opinion of this product.  Go out and get something that actually stands up to scrutiny rather than using direct sales to people who are easily intimidated by computers.

Why do they sell it this way?

Because they would never have as good a chance to sell it if it was scrutinized by reputable organizations who test products such as these.  It’s far better for this inferior product to be sold direct to a TV viewer who may not know any better.  Think of it like the skid row wino who cleans your window at the stop light and then puts out his hand in hopes you’ll give him money for a somewhat worthless and unwanted service.

How come they can sell this on TV?

TV stations need revenue to pay their bills.  They don’t often care who’s giving them money, just that they’re getting money.  It’s strictly TV business.  Just because it’s on TV doesn’t mean it’s any good.