HDWallpaper

Posted by Lisa Blanc on August 23, 2016

What is HDWallpaper?

HDWallpaper is an application that provides you with a variety of free wallpaper options. However, we are not convinced that it is entirely legitimate, and you should consider removing it because it is configured to collect information about you that might be shared with third-party advertisers. So this program can share the collected information with third-parties and makes money off it. Therefore, we have classified HDWallpaper as a potentially unwanted program (PUP.) We do not regard it as malicious, but its origins and features make it rather unreliable. test

Where does HDWallpaper come from?

There is no information about the company that developed this application. It has a promotional and distribution website at Hd-wpaper.com, but the subpages that could give information about its origins do not seem to work. All we know is that the publisher is based in Hong Kong. So one of the ways you can get this program is downloading it from its websites. Nevertheless, it has a second distribution method. Our researchers have found that this program comes with malicious software downloaders found on various shady free software hosting websites. Such websites require you to download a downloader to download the software that you want. However, such downloaders install additional software, in this case, HDWallpaper, but the installation of it is not hidden and may be able to deselect it. Now that we know all there is to know about its origins and dissemination channels let us discuss its official features.

How does HDWallpaper work?

It must be said that this application works as its promotional campaign claims. Nevertheless, it has an issue with the resolution settings. If you do not have a widescreen monitor, then the program will compress the image and make it look weird. Of course, you can manipulate the image via the Personalization settings, but it is clear that this program is not intuitive, so it does not recognize the resolution of your computer’s screen.

The application is configured to auto start when you boot up your computer and minimize when you close it, but you can deselect these features in the settings section. In any case, it presents random wallpapers and lets you choose from three categories that include Latest, Food, Brand, and Plant. This is kind of an odd way to sort categories, but that is not that important. What is important, however, are the features that are hidden from plain sight that we are most interested in.

Our security experts claim that this application is configured to use various technologies to collect and store information about you when you use HDWallpaper. These technologies include sending cookies or anonymous identifiers to your PC. These information collection techniques are used, according to the Privacy Policy, to “offer to our partners, such as advertising services or HD Wallpaper features that may appear on other sites.” So this application can be used to advertise certain content. It seems that this program’s developers have yet to strike a deal with advertisers because it still does not show ads, which is just as well because there is no telling whether the promoted content is legitimate. Therefore, we find this program unreliable, and we would recommend that you uninstall it before it starts showing advertisements that you can click accidentally and get redirected to malicious websites.

How to remove HDWallpaper?

In closing, HDWallpaper looks like a reliable application and it works as claimed, but its functionality leaves much to be desired. Still, the reason why we have classified it as a potentially unwanted program is the fact that it is set to collect information about you that might be used to present commercial advertisements as it is configured to offer advertising services to this program’s developers’ partners. If you want to remove this application, please consult the guide provided below.