A Bloatware is a type of unwanted software that exists in a preinstalled form on computers and other electronic devices, such as tablets and smartphones. Its primary aim is to serve the function of generating revenue for the device’s manufacturers as well as for the distributors and carriers. It tends to slow down the device on which it is installed and impacts the performance of that device adversely. Moreover, it consumes space and truncates the life of the device’s battery. Often referred to as Junkware, Shovelware and Crapware, it provides no value to the device user. Rather it can become a cause of exasperation and in many situations extremely harmful when it directs the user to malicious websites, changes his homepage and manipulates his browser’s settings. All of these can be detrimental to the device user.
In the context of devices that
are connected with the Internet (computers, mobile phones etc.), mentioning
websites and web hosting services becomes vital, before proceeding ahead. The
reason for it being the use of the Internet primarily for browsing a diverse
range of websites. Apart from that, as mentioned previously, a Bloatware often
makes its way into a system through malicious websites. A website is a
collection of related web pages and content (data) that is available for online
browsing and is located under a single domain as well as is identifiable by a
common domain name. Every website is made accessible for online viewing by a
certain web hosting service provider. These service providers are also referred
to as web hosts. Server space is leased by these web hosts to store and make
available the files that form a website. All the necessary services and
technologies that are needed to make a website accessible for online viewing and
to keep it up and running, are provided by web hosts through the various
packages that these offer catering to the different needs of different types of
websites. Certain terms that are often heard, such as “Top Cloud Hosting
Company” or the “Best Windows Hosting
Company” as well as the “Best Web
Hosting Company” are used to refer to those web hosting companies that
have been providing outstanding service in this field consistently, by offering
various types of web hosting packages.
Bloatware is essentially of four
types, which are, toolbars, adware, trialware and utility applications. These
preinstalled toolbars rarely match the performance of the customized ones.
These are found to be littered with random websites and in the extreme case can
hijack a user’s browser. An adware is a pop-up advertisement and is meant to
inundate the device user with spam messages as he browses the Internet. It can
not only retard a device’s performance but also make it vulnerable to security
risks. It gets installed in the operating system, preventing evasion from
advertisements even in the situation of deletion of cookies. A trialware is
another preinstalled software that can be present on a device. It is valid for
a limited time and is offered for free initially. It continues to exist on the
device and consumes space even after the end of the trial period. It can expose
the device to security threats in such a case. Last but not the least are the
utility applications, which are another type of preinstalled Bloatware. These are
supposed to either solve some problem or fulfil a particular purpose. Usually
referred to as Junkware, these often serve the purpose of drawing in the device
user to use a certain version of a particular product.
A common supply chain practice is
to supply devices with preinstalled software in order to generate revenue. This
is usually done by the manufacturers of devices, the creators of software as
well as by the carriers and the vendors. The device manufacturers that sell
their devices post installing their own software on it, do so to ensure that
the device users use their software. The creators of software pay to get their
software preinstalled on devices. Their main purpose is to acquire new
customers and increase the generation of revenue through the newly acquired
customer base. Additionally, the software creators use it as a marketing
channel.
Since a Bloatware is of no use
and can often pose as a security threat, it is imperative to remove it. For
that, first it needs to be identified. The most effective method to locate a
Bloatware on a device is by taking the aid of a Bloatware Cleanup Tool. Such a
tool automates the entire process, which can otherwise consume a lot of time. A
tool that has been designed especially for this purpose can differentiate
easily between a Bloatware and a program that is not a Bloatware. This helps
the user by ensuring that none of the useful programs get uninstalled
accidentally.
There are some other ways that
help to identify a Bloatware. The sign of a Bloatware is, that it is not at all
easy to uninstall. Moreover, it will aggressively market those offers that
target the user as a potential purchaser of additional features. If a user
finds a particular software on his device that he hasn’t installed, then it
could be a Bloatware. Another sign that indicates the presence of a Bloatware
is that the user’s browser starts displaying downrightly annoying pop-ups.
To conclude, a Bloatware is a
preinstalled software on a user’s device, which is totally unnecessary,
unwanted and of zero value to the user and usually provides him no advantage.
It only brings disadvantages by consuming storage space and valuable resources
along with slowing the device and draining its battery. Additionally, it causes
security risks by introducing adware and malware to the device. Since a
Bloatware is poorly designed and has nothing of use or value to offer, getting
rid of it after proper identification is the best solution and should be the
immediate step to ensure a top-notch quality of a user’s device’s performance.
Source: https://htshosting.org/blog/2021/01/bloatware-an-unwanted-software/
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