Format Factory
Lucien Nice Posted messages 196 Registration date Status Membre Last intervention -
Hello,
I regularly use the freeware "Format Factory" and have never had any problems with it to date.
However, Monday morning, the icon/exe had vanished from my desktop!
I have tried multiple times to reload and reinstall it, but without any success, no matter which server I choose... Has the app disappeared? Or is it no longer available?
Thank you for trying to help me.
LM
10 réponses
Hello,
Reinstall it. It seems that it is still operational... http://www.pcfreetime.com/formatfactory/index.php?language=fr
That's what I've been trying to do since this morning and I'm receiving a "photoshop" file in return, which is of course unusable...
I'm on Windows 10.
Before trying to reinstall the beast, I completely erased it from my hard drive. In any case, there was no .exe...
When I click on the link you provided, I receive a weird file format that I'm being prompted to open with Photoshop, which of course doesn't work.
As for the quarantine, sorry but my poor knowledge doesn't go that far...
In any case, thank you for trying to help me...
LM
Did you choose to display file extensions in Windows?
https://www.pcastuces.com/pratique/astuces/4563.htm
I didn't let the download finish, but I guarantee that Firefox starts downloading a file named FFSetup5.20.0.0.exe, not another type of file, and the server is unfortunately painfully slow; it's faster on a mirror site, but the version there is a bit older:
https://www.clubic.com/telecharger-fiche223920-formatfactory.html?file=33151&prelaunched=true
Based on experience (and of course if it hasn’t been uninstalled), the program can be found if you didn’t customize it in the FormatFactory folder in the Program Files directory and of course its executable is also located at:
"C:\Program Files\FormatFactory\FormatFactory.exe"
But there is a catch during installation that makes the software undesirable (and may trigger antivirus intervention):
Quarantine can only exist if the software has been downloaded or installed; there is definitely an option in the antivirus settings to exclude and restore from quarantine, but I can’t tell you more because I don’t use standard security software.
Good evening,
We're making progress...
Yes, the extensions are visible.
I used your link, slow version. It seems to work and goes all the way to the appearance of the Format Factory icon on the desktop, but then it bugs! The system tells me that the shortcut doesn't contain Format Factory.exe and asks me to delete the icon. I refuse and go take a look in the folder and, indeed, the exe in question is not there...
I also report that, during the loading, a scoundrel named Malwarebytes intervenes and throws a message at me that I don't understand at all! but it seems not to interrupt the loading...
What should I do?
Thank you for having pity on me.
LM...
Hello,
As I suggested, the culprit is probably the intervention of a security software, namely Malware Bytes, which is also likely to be targeting the unwanted executable due to the infamous Bright Data.
I don't see the point in running Malware Bytes in the background alongside your usual security software, Windows Defender or otherwise; on demand not much more, why not, but the result will be the same: as soon as it is reactivated and unless excluded, it will again delete the executable.
I completely agree with you, this thing is nothing but a nuisance for me, and it continues to annoy the hell out of me! So, how can I get rid of it once and for all?
Thank you for your advice.
LM
If the thing is Malware Bytes, either do a standard uninstall through the Control Panel or, if that isn't enough, MBAM is as stubborn as Captain Haddock’s adhesive tape; here’s a specific uninstallation tool:
https://www.malekal.com/desinstaller-supprimer-malwarebytes-anti-malware-mbam/
But that's just taking a step back to jump further ahead; it's possible that Windows Defender also intercepts the executable for the same reasons, so it should be added to exclusions.
Hello,
@ Lucien Nice,
whatever server you choose
I can only recommend that you stick to the publisher's site or CCM, to avoid well-known sites that are notorious for adding unnecessary or suspicious add-ons, which one might inadvertently fail to disable during installation.
@ brucine,
I suggest that Lucien Nice uses an uninstaller like Revo Uninstaller in advanced mode.
see tutorial and download link:
https://www.commentcamarche.net/telecharger/utilitaires/19405-revo-uninstaller/
I have managed to solve an installation issue for a new version of a programming software (portable) in C language this way.
Indeed, Revo Uninstaller removes all traces of a previous installation, knowing that "customized" installations of Format Factory may have caused these malfunctions.
I have had the opportunity to install Format Factory multiple times without any problems.
Hello,
Aside from sites that may indeed have fallen off the back of a truck, the publisher's site, which should normally be preferred over any third-party site including CCM, is terrible with an extraordinarily slow server. However, it does link to a number of mirror sites, including Clubic, which I mentioned, and which indeed has the unfortunate habit not of posting bad executables online, but of insidiously "offering" others, so one must be careful where they click.
I assume that in any case, this executable contains the infamous pest Bright Data, which is its business model and can trigger reactions from a number of security software or, otherwise, install itself without the user's awareness.
Hello.
The problem is not Malwarebytes, which is and will remain excellent protection for the PC. The real issue is Format Factory, which in its current version is far too intrusive and does not respect users' privacy at all. In fact, it is the spyware contained in the Format Factory executable that caused Malwarebytes to quarantine it. The problem can easily be solved by replacing Format Factory with another software capable of doing the same thing, perhaps even better and for free.
Best regards
Best regards
@ Lucien Nice: Thank you for your response.
@ Duno59,
If it turns out that Malwarebytes allowed the installation, it is possible that the latest version of Format Factory downloaded (directly from the publisher) is free of the unwanted add-on.
As mentioned, I am not currently using Format Factory but I assume that the publisher does not offer fraudulent versions of its product, even though we know from the X-Files that "The truth is out there".
I do not know if Lucien Nice will want to verify it by activating Malwarebytes offline, if it is still installed.
I agree with the precautions to be taken to avoid installing infected exe files, but only you can specify the origin of the file for which you received the report, given that an old installation may not have retained this infection.
Moreover, I know that there are alternatives to Format Factory and perhaps you would be willing to mention one or two, which Lucien Nice may want to test.
Re,
It is not strictly speaking fraudulent, it is an economical means for the publisher and it is often found to incorporate either an ad for another software or, in the case that concerns us Bright Data, a "service" for the collection and use of data which is supposedly only statistical (Microsoft and Google spend their lives doing the same thing, CCM does it for Cookies), and the software being free only if we accept it.
Completely agree with your comment, brucine. I clarify, for the attention of Lucien Nice, but perhaps you were already implying it:
There are the collection tools specific to most publishers and sites that you mentioned, which we accept due to our inability or unwillingness to refuse them.
And on the other hand, there are the "gift" software that can be excluded during the installation process of the desired software. These are generally those added by download sites.
By fraudulent, I meant neither the former nor the latter, but the stealthy applications that execute fraudulent codes such as keyloggers, password theft, or banking codes, etc...
It is these malicious codes that Malwarebytes protects against.
To be compared with extreme users, who through an all-powerful forum, expect the guarantee of practicing computing with complete immunity.
Hello,
My FF is now working normally and I'm not going to take the risk of re-launching Malwarething, which I don't have on my machine anymore, for the risk of crashing everything again. As for switching to another provider, no thanks. At 86 years old when the first chill sets in, I don’t want to have to learn how to use a new app.
Anyway, thanks again to everyone for helping me out of a tough spot.
Best regards.
Hello,
Does the fact that a shortcut has vanished from the desktop mean that the software itself has disappeared?