Hi Ken,
I apologize for the inconvenience caused to you and To assist with the issue better please send the screenshot of the error caused in your PC. Please use the below link to send the screenshot.
http://avgclick.me/getscreenshot
Thank you
For the past while, AVG's been getting more and more annoying as it started popping up ads for AVG's various purchasable improvements. Last week I got a "fun" surprise. I got up, went to look at my computer, and found that AVG had updated itself and brought in something called Zen. In addition, it did the following:
1) Installed Google Chrome.
2) Set Google Chrome as my default browser.
3) Set Bing as my default search engine.
4) Declared that BitTorrent, which has been running happily with AVG for better than 4 years, was now a hotbed of multiple viruses, and disabled it.
5) Informed me that I now had 2 versions of AVG running and that one of them would need to be uninstalled.
I uninstalled both versions of AVG, then tried reinstalling. Wound up with Zen again. Uninstalled. Tried 2 prior versions of AVG. Both declared that they were out of date and proceeded to install Zen. Uninstalled each time. Went off and got Avira and installed it because I didn't want my system running without antivirus protection.
Off to work. Found something similar had happened the previous night; AVG now was Zen and had happily updated who and what I'd be using.
Uninstalled AVG. Luckily my work Win10 system has Windows Defender, so currently that's what I'm using as a firewall until either A) AVG fixes it's product so it doesn't go malware all over a system or B) I get enough experience with Avira at home that I'm comfortable installing it at work.
After all of the above, the question is, will AVG be dumping Zen and correcting it's malware-like actions or not? The answer will determine whether or not I reinstall it anywhere.
ok where to start…
i have been running an older version of avg to avoid zen but woke the other morning to find my pc froze up which has never happened before. i restarted pc and it hangs trying to load. after multiple attempts the only way to boot pc is to load from last known good configuration each time pc is started(even this doesn't work everytime). only to find Zen has been installed without notice or consent and an avg error message:
"UI Failed to load. This is really embarrassing. Av Service is not responding".
searching for answers i see many users are having the same issues as i am. not seeing many having success fixing this issue here i contacted Remote Tech Support and spoke with Karizza who told me "avg never installs zen without permission. you must have told it to do so without realizing it"(which i have seen that response stated here in several posts) and that "he could remote my pc to fix this issue and install the latest AVG Antivirus without Zen but i would need to pay him to do so." when i questioned his ability to install the newest avg without zen he stated "Zen is NOT included in AVG Free, it is only available for the paid version". after i insisted this information wasn't accurate he asked me to speak to his supervisor which to my surprise told me the same thing "install the AVG Free version as only the paid version comes with Zen or pay us to do it for you". after getting nowhere with them they transfered me to Yuvraj in customer service which apologized for the bad information i received from remote tech support and stated "you cannot install any avg free antivirus without zen, not even through the offline installer" (which is also stated here in many posts) and "that is incorrect information. avg free now automatically updates the older versions to the latest version and zen is installed with definition update without prompt. there is no way to stop this from happening".
as with others i have tried many suggestions including but not limited to: repair install, followed instructions using AVG_Clear.exe, AVG_Remover.exe, searched for and deleted all avg files and registry items then fresh installed avg. nothing has worked for me nor have i seen others that have had successful results in fixing this
so…since it makes no sense to run an app that does exactly what it is supposed to prevent(install and run unwanted stuff without your permission that cause your system harm), then insist they will fix it for a fee and give you the version that you want(which isn't possible). after many years of using avg free on this pc and the paid version on my 2 sons, wifes, friends, family members devices and recommended to countless others, it is time to say goodbye to AVG. if customer service is wrong and any of this information is incorrect please feel free to let me know
Hi Ken,
I apologize for the inconvenience caused to you and To assist with the issue better please send the screenshot of the error caused in your PC. Please use the below link to send the screenshot.
http://avgclick.me/getscreenshot
Thank you
John,
Sorry for the confusion. I would like to inform you that AVG Free Antivirus cannot be installed without AVG Zen. But AVG Zen is just an user interface that contains enhanced features of AVG Free Antivirus. AVG carefully monitors the quality of our products and the service we provide, therefore all feedback from our customers is important to us. If you have a specific experience with AVG products that you would like to share with us, we would appreciate hearing about it.
Thank you.
ok where to start…
i have been running an older version of avg to avoid zen but woke the other morning to find my pc froze up which has never happened before. i restarted pc and it hangs trying to load. after multiple attempts the only way to boot pc is to load from last known good configuration each time pc is started(even this doesn't work everytime). only to find Zen has been installed without notice or consent and an avg error message:
"UI Failed to load. This is really embarrassing. Av Service is not responding".
searching for answers i see many users are having the same issues as i am. not seeing many having success fixing this issue here i contacted Remote Tech Support and spoke with Karizza who told me "avg never installs zen without permission. you must have told it to do so without realizing it"(which i have seen that response stated here in several posts) and that "he could remote my pc to fix this issue and install the latest AVG Antivirus without Zen but i would need to pay him to do so." when i questioned his ability to install the newest avg without zen he stated "Zen is NOT included in AVG Free, it is only available for the paid version". after i insisted this information wasn't accurate he asked me to speak to his supervisor which to my surprise told me the same thing "install the AVG Free version as only the paid version comes with Zen or pay us to do it for you". after getting nowhere with them they transfered me to Yuvraj in customer service which apologized for the bad information i received from remote tech support and stated "you cannot install any avg free antivirus without zen, not even through the offline installer" (which is also stated here in many posts) and "that is incorrect information. avg free now automatically updates the older versions to the latest version and zen is installed with definition update without prompt. there is no way to stop this from happening".
as with others i have tried many suggestions including but not limited to: repair install, followed instructions using AVG_Clear.exe, AVG_Remover.exe, searched for and deleted all avg files and registry items then fresh installed avg. nothing has worked for me nor have i seen others that have had successful results in fixing this
so…since it makes no sense to run an app that does exactly what it is supposed to prevent(install and run unwanted stuff without your permission that cause your system harm), then insist they will fix it for a fee and give you the version that you want(which isn't possible). after many years of using avg free on this pc and the paid version on my 2 sons, wifes, friends, family members devices and recommended to countless others, it is time to say goodbye to AVG. if customer service is wrong and any of this information is incorrect please feel free to let me know
Hello Ken,
We understand your concern. Please be informed that it is impossible to install AVG AntiVirus free without Zen interface. If you have any feedback on AVG products, you can use this link http://avgclick.me/AVGfeedback to send your feedback to AVG. This will reach the concerned team.
Thank you
Unfortunately, it's not possible to get you a screenshot. As per what I wrote, I uninstalled both copies of AVG from my home machine (as it was complaining about) and was not able to successfully reinstall any of my older versions.
As for the malware activity, it installed and configured Google Chrome / Bing without permission and upon finding so, I immediately removed and reset my system. So again, no screenshots possible.
Currently AVG's been uninstalled from both home and work, and will not be reinstalled until Zen and it's malware activities are corrected.
Ken, For your info, just in case that you are unaware, you can post the screenshot here in your topic. Click on 'Answer' & then click on the 'Image' [mountain symbol] & follow the instructions.
AVG Guru