HP Smart is auto installing on Windows 11 and Windows 10 on non HP-machines

Weird

Yeah, I got it while installing that useless Snipping Tool!
And I thought I was safe uninstalling the Store!
Must be the App Installer acting as a front for the Store!

I do have HP Printer(s). Microsoft Store tried to update HP Smart on November 16, 2023 and had some problem so I uninstalled and reinstalled it although I don't know for the original installation, did I actually install it or did Windows.

Almighty1 said:

I do have HP Printer(s). Microsoft Store tried to update HP Smart on November 16, 2023 and had some problem so I uninstalled and reinstalled it although I don't know for the original installation, did I actually install it or did Windows.

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Asus Laptop, no printers.

"Holy Bend it like Beckham", this has been installed on my pc. It is not a full app but an installer hub that links to the web to install HP Smart, but nonetheless, should not be installed automatically.

I hope it is just an MS glitch, not a "hidden experiment to install vendor crapware so MS get more revenue".

May want to check. (Excerpt)


On November 29th, dozens of Windows users found HP Smart in the "Recently Added" section of their Start menu. If this were a case of user error, it wouldn't have happened to so many people on the same day. Affected users say that they don't own any HP hardware. One user thought that the app was malware and repeatedly reinstalled Windows, only to find that HP Smart would reappear in the Start menu.

A Microsoft Store bug may be responsible for this problem. That said, we're not sure why the Microsoft Store would push HP Smart to random PCs. And the fact that this is even possible is somewhat worrying, as the Microsoft Store contains some scammy apps and malware. If one of these bad apps began appearing on users' PCs, we'd be having a very different conversation right now.

HP's Printer App Is Installing Itself on Windows PCs

I have had my Windows update disabled for many months now (June 2023) and I don't have any HP devices.

Two possibilities here:

1. Windows Defender has installed the update
2. Windows downloaded in the background (not via Windows Update) without the user knowing.

Interestingly, HP Smart app doesn't appear in Revo Uninstaller.

Sammy888 said:

Interestingly, HP Smart app doesn't appear in Revo Uninstaller.

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The app is not actually an installed app but an installer link to enable it to be installed.

cereberus said:

The app is not actually an installed app but an installer link to enable it to be installed.

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Are you certain? I uninstalled it and it took some time. The article above refers to it as an app and to uninstall or disable it in the startup.

I have HP Smart on my laptop. Plus, I have several other HP utilities and a HP Envy Pro 6400 printer. I mostly use HP Smart to manage the printer. The printer is WiFi connected so that I can print/scan/fax from any of my computers or cell phones.

I can see them all under "Installed Apps" and they are removable. But for the most part, I don't sweat the small stuff. I have a 900 GB hard drive with 700 GB free, so I am not tight for space. If I have any apps installed, that I don't like or use (e.g. Cortana, Edge, Games, etc..), I just ignore them.

K7MEM said:

I have HP Smart on my laptop. Plus, I have several other HP utilities and a HP Envy Pro 6400 printer. I mostly use HP Smart to manage the printer. The printer is WiFi connected so that I can print/scan/fax from any of my computers or cell phones.

I can see them all under "Installed Apps" and they are removable. But for the most part, I don't sweat the small stuff. I have a 900 GB hard drive with 700 GB free, so I am not tight for space. If I have any apps installed, that I don't like or use (e.g. Cortana, Edge, Games, etc..), I just ignore them.

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This isn't by any means "small stuff" for those who don't have HP hardware. It's a big deal for us and it should concern every Windows owner.

I got it last night on a Windows 10 laptop

Working on a client's machine yesterday and got it but she did have an HP printer. The client's son-in-law had installed her printer but not all of the program for it. I've always installed it on my computers as I run 2 HP printers, OfficeJet and LaserJet connected via Ethernet to my Router.

Sammy888 said:

Are you certain? I uninstalled it and it took some time. The article above refers to it as an app and to uninstall or disable it in the startup.

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When you click on link, it asks for info like cookies etc. Pretty sure it is an installer of the app.

I don't have it, but I have Microsoft Store blocked in my firewall (unless I need to use it).

For a long time HP Smart was auto installed on my Win10 and Win11 PCs during a clean installation. It seemed after the fact as I assumed it detected my network attached HP printer and was installed via Microsoft Store. Which was fine for me because I use it occasionally. However more recently it was not being installed automatically. Multiple clean installs of both Win10 and 11 it didn't show up and I had to manually install via MS store. But very recently I'd done a few clean installs of Win11 and noticed it auto installed again. I wondered what had changed.

Ghot said:

I don't have it, but I have Microsoft Store blocked in my firewall (unless I need to use it

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Are you using Windows Firewall?

One of the great things I loved (until it became destructive) was Windows (7) Private Firewall. It was a simpler version of ZoneAlarm before it turned into rubbish. PF would notify you of any unauthorized or untrusted process each time unlike Windows Firewall.

If Microsoft Store installs apps in the background, this is concerning and may be intentionally allowed in Windows Firewall.

cereberus said:

When you click on link, it asks for info like cookies etc. Pretty sure it is an installer of the app.

Click to expand...

Nope. It's an .exe. It's over 285 MB in size and it reinstalled itself (again).

Bree said:

I got it last night on a Windows 10 laptop

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Run MRT.exe, see if it comes up malicious!