I recently became aware that an app I used to draw on my screen called Epic Pen, bundled a software called BrightData with it. BrightData is some kind of software that makes your machine’s resources available to others in their network. Of course the idea of this happening without my knowledge immediately made me concerned. Guess I should’ve read the terms more carefully.
Anyways, I don’t trust this software anymore and while they claim to not start any BrightData stuff on your machine without having it enabled in the settings, I am wondering if anyone knows what BrightData’s processes are called, so I can confirm if they have nothing running on my machine? I am on MacOS.
Oh and yes I realize that Epic Pen no longer partners with them, but I had downloaded a version prior to them stopping the partnership, according to their own FAQ…
Use process explorer: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/process-explorer
You can block application execution using Group Policy, if you’re on Windows Home, just follow the registry section: https://www.guidingtech.com/prevent-users-from-running-certain-programs-on-windows/ You will need the file name in order to add it to the do not run list. You can also block its access to your network with your firewall solution quite easily once you find the exe. ZoneAlarm is a good free firewall that makes it simple to do this.
According to this website, the process is called “brightdata.exe”: https://www.advanceduninstaller.com/Epic-Pen-02c6f8732d69800d9b44099a870e3467-application.htm
You can use revo uninstaller tools to check everything that is configured to autorun on your computer: https://www.revouninstaller.com/products/revo-uninstaller-free/
The best advice however is that if a program makes you feel like your privacy and security can be at risk, it is best to note use it and find an alternative. E.g., reputable open source software.
Hello,
Why not ask Epic Pen or even BrightData for removal instructions?
Regards,
Aryeh Goretsky
Thanks for the detailed reply. I am running MacOS, not Windows though, so I was hoping someone knows the name of the process, in case it’s not something obvious like BrightData, etc
I will ask, but to be honest I lost trust in both. I never trusted BrightData (I wouldn’t have installed Epic Pen in the first place if I had known), and the way BrightData spins their product sounds harmless. But after doing research on who their parent company is, it seems their product is kind of shady. And as for Epic Pen, it left a bad taste in my mouth they didn’t really advertise they were partnering with them unless you go looking for the information. To be fair to Epic Pen, they are not hiding it, but still, the fact they partnered with them in the first place makes me skeptical and made me lose trust.
Unfortunately, I do not know, I tried looking online and couldn’t find anything definitive. You can try contacting Bright Data support to find out.
Hello,
If the companies are legitimate and do not want to be characterized as malware, adware, potentially unwanted application vendors or worse, they should be willing to help you. Give it a try: Be polite, but he firm with them, and let us know how it goes.
Regards,
Aryeh Goretsky
Ok, appreciate you taking the time to reply. Thank you