Double My Speed.com / Max My Speed.com Software: Buy or Beware?

Computer Repair Software - By mconnors on Morgue File
Computer Repair Software - By mconnors on Morgue File
DoubleMySpeed.com and MaxMySpeed.com sells their computer repair software for $39.98 with a 100% guarantee. Is this scam? Time for a closer look.

Their website displays a “100% Satisfaction Guarantee” seal as well as apparent support for their program by USA Today, C|Net and Computerworld. They also proudly display a “17 million users” image above five blue stars. In addition to their website, they’ve also bought TV airtime so as to be able to mass market their product. Thus, as an individual with over 10-years IT experience and who presently provides technical support to over 200 at home workers, this author decided it was time for a closer look at their computer repair software offerings.

DoubleMySpeed.com & MaxMySpeed.com: What is It?

Both are a website (owned by CyberDefender Corp) that primarily offers computer repair software designed to clean all of the clutter from the computer. Typically, this clutter is a result of simply normal computer use; downloading files, creating and deleting files, moving items around and surfing or gaming online.

Over time, normal use of a computer creates clutter on the computer, which continuously builds up and results in an ever slower performing computer. Removing this clutter (depending on how much is there), will in fact result in a computer that runs more quickly. This software is commonly known as computer repair software.

Double My Speed & Max My Speed: Computer Repair Software Disclaimer

PC repair software, while being able to enhance the speed of a computer as a result of removing some of the clutter which is getting in the way, can never return a slow computer to its ‘brand new’ speed. This is because the owner continuously installs programs or creates files (such as text documents). The more that is added into the computer, the more it has to look through and therefore the slower it will run.

It is this fact that CyberDefender also admits to in their small print disclaimer; “Computer performance improvements may vary depending on the software you are using and other multiple factors outside of our control”. What does that mean? It means that purchasing their software may not in fact improve computer performance at all.

Max My Speed & Double My Speed: First Warning Sign to Buyers

Despite claiming that they have over 17 million users of their software, the site itself oddly displays only five messages from happy customers; the longest being only 3 sentences. This should serve as the first warning sign to prospective buyers. Any retailer will usually milk every single positive customer response for all they’re worth. After all, it’s free advertising. It must be noted of course that CyberDefender does display some star power names on their website. There's a "Rated 4 Stars by CNET" claim, "CyberDefender is fierce..." by USA Today and "CyberDefender is fast and useful" by Computerworld.

Read This Next

Interestingly, visiting the CyberDefender Registry Cleaner page on the CNET website will display they currently have a rating of only 3 Stars. The rating (as well as feedback) is given by users, not CNET itself. There are however quite a few satisfied customer comments posted.

Attempting to validate Computerworld's quote will also turn up interesting results. Computerworld displays articles regarding CyberDefender dating back to Dec. 2006. The closest quote this author could verify was "CyberDefenderFREE is fast and useful, but still a work in progress".

Pressure Tactics Used With Trial Version: Second Warning Sign

This item should serve as the second (and bigger) red flag for potential buyers. To test drive the software, download it onto the computer and run it. The entire process takes about 5 minutes and when completed displays a list of everything that CyberDefender suggests is wrong with the PC; which requires the purchase of program for $39.98 to “fix” all of the issues.

If instead however the user simply chooses to close the program, it immediately pops up several windows in an attempt to convince you to buy immediately. One window also immediately attempts to place you into a chat room with a sales rep. In fact, it’s actually quite difficult getting the program to shut down as it opens several different windows simultaneously. Many of the customer comments on CNET (link embedded above) also comment about the pop-ups. This is known as a pressure tactic, and is used most often with products or services with little value, or are over-priced.

Issue Reporting: Third Warning Sign

The final warning sign with this software, which is probably the biggest as well, has to do with its reporting of issues with the registry. The software was tested on a PC which was first thoroughly cleaned and then checked with several different pc registry cleaners (Registry Mechanic 9, CCleaner, Free Registry Fix and Norton Registry Cleaner) to ensure there were absolutely no registry issues.

When the CyberDefender program was run however, it reported 518 issues affecting the performance of the PC. This is not to say the report from the program was false, but it is unlikely that other programs of similar quality and purpose did not resolve the issues that could affect PC performance.

Double My Speed / Max My Speed: Are they a Scam?

Despite what some may think, CyberDefender is not attempting to scam the customer (according to current laws), because of the fact that it is functional computer optimization software. Some may feel their sales tactics are questionable, but they are selling a product considered legitimate. Thus, unless the current laws change, CyberDefender is free to continue to sell their product using the methods they currently employ.

Registry Cleaners: Buyer Beware

There is a plethora of computer repair software and registry cleaners out there (online) designed to keep computers running at optimum levels. There are so many in fact, that many ISPs and virus protection software makers include such programs as part of their packages at no cost. Rarely ever will someone encounter the need to purchase such a program. So buyer beware, use the internet for what it was designed, to make smarter decisions.

Additional articles related to registry cleaner software and computer optimization include

My Faster PC.com Software: Buy or Beware?

Double My Speed.com Software, Are PC Optimizers a Scam?

Slow Computer, No Magic Needed to Fix Slow PC

Are Registry Cleaners Needed?

Registry Cleaner Review

David Wigle, David Wigle

David Wigle - Contact: davidwigle@rogers.com

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Comments

Jun 14, 2010 8:54 PM
Guest :
i need someting fast,free now,virus,slow pop ups? i have just in 8 months teach myself.??
Jun 15, 2010 6:34 PM
David Wigle :
I'm uncertain Guest what you meant to communicate. Please provide additional details.
Jun 19, 2010 11:06 AM
Guest :
I appreciate your review. I was bored and got tired of seeing the commercials, so I thought I might do one myself. I am glad I did not waste my time, you have done a thorough job. To help the "Guest" above, I think you may want to download AVG free and AVG toolbar. Yet I am completely confused about the 8mo thing. I take it if you don't post again that you are a BOT.
Jun 20, 2010 7:55 PM
Guest :
My fresh re load of windows on a rebuilt computer with no web connections showed some 300 “errors “ according to Cyberware, while they claimed this needed attention and fixing? Meanwhile the legitimate software “Norton Windoctor” showed no infections at all, and my other legitimate AV software keeps showing no problems as well.
Purchase any “non free” AV software and save your self all the BS and trouble that Cyberware brings, and ignore their own write ups claiming to the contrary.
Jun 21, 2010 11:28 AM
Guest :
"Despite what some may think, CyberDefender is not attempting to scam the customer."

Yea, and as Bill Clinton said: "I did NOT have sex with that woman!".

Just what do you call a snake oil vendor that sells CRAPWARE to non-technical consumers with no chance of fixing anything?

This stuff should come with a mandatory Surgeon General's warning attached: "WARNING! THIS SOFTWARE FIXES NOTHING EXCEPT THAT BULGE IN YOUR WALLET!"
Jun 22, 2010 2:47 PM
David Wigle :
To address the previous two comments:

1) Comment from "Guest" on Jun 19, 2010 11:06 AM - Just to be clear, the software offered on doublemyspeed.com is not "AV" (anti-virus) software, it is Registry Cleaner software.

2) Comment from "Guest" on Jun 21, 2010 11:28 AM - the term "scam" means to defraud or cheat. Whether or not someone believes the software to be worth buying OR whether or not someone agrees with a company's advertising policy is a completely separate issue. The article itself does not suggest purchasing this program but it also cannot ignore the fact that it is a legitimate program.
Jun 24, 2010 12:41 PM
Guest :
As a computer repair person, one who builds computers from scratch, loads and repairs operating systems, removes virus attacks, fixes registry errors, and removes malware attacks, I have access to legitimate soft ware and service to handle these things. The only thing Cyberware and all of its associate names will do for you is lighten your wallet and leave you worse off than before you started. They will give you far more trouble than they will ever fix, and they will lighten your wallet as per Barnum and Bailey,......... a fool is born every day.
Jul 1, 2010 5:28 PM
Guest :
Great Article on www.doublemyspeed.com. It is quite obvious to anyone who has any IT background that has heard the Radio advertisment, that these guys are making millions. Can you imagine having a stand alone website that has a click to buy for $40?? All they have to do now is collect the checks...
Jul 22, 2010 10:49 AM
Guest :
This was one of the most informative articles I have read on the computer. Great job by David Wigle. Thanks for your professional approach to this product.
Aug 8, 2010 11:23 AM
Guest :
If the software reports false issues in an attempt to scare you into buying the product, that sounds like a "scam" to me!
Oct 24, 2010 9:08 PM
Guest :
Well I couldn't have said it better my self. Thank you for posting on this product, and as for the reg issues I will have to look in to testing that for my self.
Oct 30, 2010 9:37 AM
Guest :
My computer was seriously slow and locking up. I regularly run Microsoft Essentials, CCleaner, and Malwarebytes. Computer kept locking up. So, I thought I'd go out on a limb and try Double My Speed. The good news: they fixed my computer and it runs great now. The bad news: it is a classic bait-and-switch. Their website allows a free scan but to fix the issues found requires buying their software. Then, they require a phone call to activate the software. This phone call is actually a sales event, where they try to sell their 24/7 service to support your computer. I went ahead an bought it, depending on the guarantee in case I was not satisfied. Their tech (what they called a "certified level 3 technician") spend many hours connected to my computer. The result was as advertised. The price was ridiculously high--I could have bought a new desktop--but decided that if it didn't work I would get my money back and if it did, I could avoid going to the store, shopping for a new desktop, lugging it home, transferring my files, and so on. The price was $130 three times (three easy payments!) and I was able to talk the rep down by discounting the amount I had paid online for their initial service. That also extended the license on the software from 1 year to 2.
Again: good news: it works.
Bad news: Bait and switch and really expensive.
Nov 1, 2010 12:50 AM
Guest :
You're far too sympathetic to what is an obvious scam. What you're calling "pressure tactics" is actually a loophole in a poorly written law that roughly translates as "if you inform your consumer that you are installing a virus, then it is no longer illegal."

Any program that inhibits the normal usage of a machine and/or the removal of said program is malware (I believe that's the correct classification). The behaviours you describe are akin to you entering a store and then being immediately detained and threatened until you make a purchase... the legalities that occur in the physical world simply have not properly transitioned into the digital one.

On that note, these same "tactics" are employed by recognized malware software (termed smitfraud, I believe). If your description is accurate, the only difference between the two softwares is the fact that one notifies the user that it is installing a virus, and the other simply installs it.

This, in fact, has been the basis for the removal of would-be malware from popular virus scanners or various other schemes. There is a legal basis here, and you will see that by pointing to a clause in their EULA that these companies are able to claim the user knew what he was installing, therefore even though the actions of the installed software can be classified as malware, that by labeling it as such (by popular program), the virus scanner company is committing an act of defamation, hence lawsuit.



Eitherway, that aside. You do not seem to actually understand the service that DoubleMySpeed.com is performing and as such are sounding quite uneducated. One particular part (which again ties into the Pressure Tactics) is of particular annoyance. You claim to use multiple computer cleaners to "clean" a registry and compare the results between the two.

Let me use another analogy. You want to know if a dish is any good, so you call up 3 people to eat the food, compare their opinions, and form your own... NEVER ONCE having sampled the food.

You simply stated that it reported 518 issues. That is meaningless. You don't even know WHAT those 518 issues were... and though your tone is such that you obviously are trying imply that the software is generating false positives, you don't even have the courage to say it... perhaps because you want to present a sense of false neutrality or because you simply don't want to be caught in your own ignorance.


The truth is... you're not even neutral... you're being subjective. Treating the software to "special tests" and not even objectively comparing other software to it. You have an obvious viewpoint and are trying to smear it with your pseudo-neutral writing.

If you want neutrality, you do not ever single the product out. You don't blatantly inform the user that the product is a sham and then turn tail and refute that statement. Between all the garbage, all I see is someone who doesn't really feel certain in what he's saying.


And you shouldn't! You're not an expert in this field, you obviously don't even know anything about computers other than they turn on and make pretty lights. You can't just "google" or go on the accursed wikipedia, read for 5 min, and actually expect people to consider you CREDIBLE.

I mean, take a look at Guest Jun 19, 2010 11:06 AM
First, he says "download AVG, AVG Cool, Also get Toolbar, Toolbar Cool"

AVG will slow your computer down to a halt. NEVER install AVG. USE AVG AFTER you get a virus. PC Tools Firewall is very light, non-invasive, and will protect your computer far better than AVG ever will. (unless you're dumb... then get avg).

Toolbars are even worse, because now you're attaching something to the browser which, in turn, slows down your browser... and they also tend to transmit personal data for little more than a bookmark.

Finally, he notes that guest Jun 14, 2010 8:54 PM is a "BOT" (emphasis on the capitals) because he doesn't reply. Obvious ignorance here...



The only difference between you, and him... well... it's just that you're the author of the article and he's the reader. He is every bit as credible as you are... and that is the sorry truth.
Nov 8, 2010 9:50 AM
Guest :
very well put
Dec 7, 2010 8:20 PM
Guest :
Thank you for the thorough exam of this "radio commercial" i am always hearing!
Jan 29, 2011 8:18 PM
Guest :
Helpful. Thanks!
Feb 1, 2011 5:52 AM
Guest :
Funny that you write a poor article that gets justifiably reamed by an actually knowledgable person, and you can't even bother ot respond. Pathetic. great website--"informed writers" my ass. Next time do some research and don't pretend you know what you're talking about. Love that this article is copyrighted, too. HA!!!
Feb 1, 2011 9:42 AM
David Wigle :
Regarding comment from "Guest" at Feb 1, 2011 5:52 AM;

All comments posted regarding written articles are moderated (approved or decline) by the individual author. Thus, I myself approved both your comment and the one which you are referencing (posted by "Guest" on Nov 1, 2010 12:50 AM). Why? Because I feel even is entitled to their opinion...and said opinion does not have to agree with my own.

Having said that, while the comment posted by "Guest" on Nov 1, 2010 12:50 AM makes a couple of interesting arguments, for the most part, the entire comment is incorrect. And since you feel so strongly that I absolutely MUST defend myself (which I don't feel is the case), let me provide a little education.

Referring to the comment posted by "Guest" on Nov 1, 2010 12:50 AM...

1) Regarding the first four paragraphs of the comment - I am in complete agreement. I believe this company is using a legal loophole through which to sell is wares under the classification of a good product. The wording used within my article to convey this message however was required to fall within Suite101 rules and guidelines. There was originally, more strongly worded opinions and expressions, but these were edited out of the final draft as they were considered inappropriate to Suite101's level of "journalist integrity".

2) Regarding paragraphs 5 and 6 wherein the Guest states "You do not seem to actually understand the service that DoubleMySpeed.com is performing and as such are sounding quite uneducated. One particular part (which again ties into the Pressure Tactics) is of particular annoyance. You claim to use multiple computer cleaners to "clean" a registry and compare the results between the two. Let me use another analogy. You want to know if a dish is any good, so you call up 3 people to eat the food, compare their opinions, and form your own... NEVER ONCE having sampled the food."

Unfortunately, this is incorrect reasoning and comparison on the part of the commenter. A "plate" is used to display food...it does not affect the taste. The comparison I used is more akin to testing different types of gasoline in a car and seeing which one gives better mileage within a specific testing environment. Comparing the results of Double My Speed and Max My Speed to other registry cleaner programs is in fact a completely valid test...because the parameters of the testing environment was exactly the same for each program used. Thus apples were compared to apples.

3) Regarding paragraph 7, wherein the comment states "You simply stated that it reported 518 issues. That is meaningless. You don't even know WHAT those 518 issues were... and though your tone is such that you obviously are trying imply that the software is generating false positives, you don't even have the courage to say it... perhaps because you want to present a sense of false neutrality or because you simply don't want to be caught in your own ignorance."

Again, we have an issue of the comment being incorrect. The article clearly states that we were looking specifically at the number of report "registry" errors. Thus there is no room for misinterpretation. What was not included in the article was the conversation I had with the company's technical support department wherein they claimed that the reported registry errors were a result of the computer "simply turning on". Additionally, they claim that the simply act of "moving the mouse will cause registry errors on your computer". The fact that the commenter did not take the time to understand what was written is his/her own error.

4) Regarding paragraph 8 wherein the comment states "The truth is... you're not even neutral... you're being subjective. Treating the software to "special tests" and not even objectively comparing other software to it. You have an obvious viewpoint and are trying to smear it with your pseudo-neutral writing."

At no point in time did I claim to be neutral. My personal opinion, formed through testing conducted by myself, is that both programs are a waste of money and cause people further headaches. Unfortunately, the rules governing expressed opinions within written articles are from Suite101...and if a writer wishes his/her work to be published, then the article must conform to Suite101's format.

5) As for the remaining paragraphs within the comment, which references comments posted by others...that's his/her opinion. I cannot comment on what this person 'feels'. It's unfortunate that I cannot share the hundreds of emails I've received from buyers of these programs who state they wish they had read my article before buying it...or who have thanked me for preventing them from buying it...or who I have personally assisted in getting the program off their computer because it simply would not uninstall.

Each person will form their own opinion...my own opinion is that based upon how I have personally seen these two program function, I for one would not buy them.
Feb 11, 2011 12:09 AM
Guest :
well is very interesting your final coment, well I have to say you that this software is one of the biggest to check your pc and send very important information to somewhere, anyway I think the usa gov, has their hands inside many software that could work to spy people, otherwise how do you think this software has the enought money to be on tv every 20 minutes all the day and everyday of the year. check fx channels. they have its comercial promo avery time they go to promo comercials. thanks and have a nice day all of you
Feb 22, 2011 8:07 AM
Guest :
Scam
-noun
1. a confidence game or other fraudulent scheme, especially for making a quick profit; swindle.

Selling something that does nothing........Sounds like Scam to me!
Buying something that does nothing........Sounds like allot of Consumer's!
Mar 17, 2011 5:23 AM
Guest :
they put a tracking virus on my pc to try and make me buy more protection i watched the tech do it and he kept trying to cover it up by putting a different window over top of the download it was called RelevantKnowledge aka rlls.dll and it slowed my computer down until i tracked it down and went to safe mode to remove although there program for fixing pc errors worked they tried slowing down my computer to scam me out of more money very bad company the guy on the phone also tried using verbal scare tactics to get me to buy when i told him i did not want anything more than the fix errors he said and i quote "So you are just going to use this computer until it stops working all together cause thats whats going to happen unless you buy more protection" do not be fooled this is not a good company
Apr 5, 2011 10:46 AM
Guest :
This company also trys to sell you IT time to fix big issues which i have discovered since did not exist. They wanted 348 dollars for 5 hours worth of work to fix my computer remotely.
Apr 20, 2011 11:09 PM
Guest :
Thank you for writing an article on this. I had been hearing their radio ad off and on, but it wasn't until my father's laptop started taking approximately 3-4 minutes to fully boot up that I started to seriously consider checking them out.

I was already somewhat wary, I admit. Whenever I heard the advertiser say "go to doublemyspeed.com for your FREE DIAGNOSIS", my first thought was always "how do they make their money". Even so, I was going to check out their website to see what the deal was.

Again, thank you so much for the heads-up. I will not be visiting their website or have anything to do with them, ever.
May 1, 2011 6:10 AM
Guest :
Maxmyspeeed over bills customers and misleads them about what the total charges will be. They said two years of protection was ~120. They then proceeded to bill three consecutive months. When asked, they said it was an installment plan. They then agreed to remove all but the first charge and the service was discontinued the following day (yet a charge remained). SCAM.
May 20, 2011 3:08 PM
Guest :
"Registry cleaning" software is a bogus category in the first place, as the registry is simply a database. It doesn't require "cleaning." It can be compacted, but this has little actual benefit. To date, I have only found a few obscure items that can be present in the registry that specifically hampers performance, which are the values that control if PIO mode is forced on, and the various items that control low-level memory management functions such as large system cache and disabling paging of the NT executive. Removing unnecessary registry keys has negligible performance impact.

It seems to me that "registry cleaner" software exploits most users' lack of understanding of what the Windows registry is and does and how it works, in order to make a quick buck. If one wishes to remove unnecessary registry keys, the best thing I have found is (free) CCleaner's registry scanner, which really only seems to clean up erroneous references left behind by removed software...and like I said, in the vast majority of cases, doesn't make any notable difference at all anyway.
Jul 23, 2011 10:54 PM
Guest :
I believe this is scam. You download the product, they provide you false information, then require you to download the product for an outrageous price. I already knew this was a scam when I first saw it on TV. Avast! and MalwareBytesAntiMalware works fine for me, and keeps me from getting malware, viruses, and other infections. This is just a scam for you to give them $40 of your money to fix non-existing "errors."
Oct 10, 2011 11:43 AM
Guest :
Hi, my name is Chris. I’m a representative from CyberDefender Customer Service. If you have any questions or concerns about CyberDefender products—including MaxMySpeed.com, DoubleMySpeed.com, and MyCleanPC.com—feel free to e-mail me at community@cyberdefender.com.
Thank You,
Chris
Oct 11, 2011 8:51 AM
David Wigle :
Hi Chris
Thank you for your comments (though more than a year late). I did in fact speak to representatives (on the phone and via email) from CyberDefender Customer Service several times prior to writing this article to specifically discuss my above findings.

I short, each time I communicated with your staff, they provided false and/or misleading information regarding the DoubleMySpeed and MaxMySpeed products; claiming that these products found registry errors that no other software was capable to finding, and claiming that registry errors were a bigger problem than we all realize.

Case and point, here are quotes from emails I received from different CyberDefender staff when they were asked why your software discovered so many registry errors, while others did not;

1) "turning off and then restarting your computer produces registry errors."
2) "turning the computer on, opening your Internet browser, and moving the mouse will result in registry errors."
3) "registry errors occur every time you use your computer."

These are statements of "fact" made by CyberDefender staff. In my 15 years of IT experience, working with dozens of other IT professionals, I've never once encountered anything that would support the above statements.

I've also spoken with other software developers/manufacturers. And while all support their own product first (obviously), when asked about competitor products, all are unanimous in one opinion...that the way DoubleMySpeed and MaxMySpeed report "found errors" is misleading to the consumer.

However Chris, if you would like to provide solid information regarding what your products do, how they do it and why so many of us are mistaken about your products, I'd be more than happy to share the results with my readers in a follow up article.
Jan 16, 2012 2:39 AM
Guest :
Well done. Thank you for the research you performed and the write-up. I have always wondered what those 'pay' versions would accomplish over the already existing free ware. I also do lots of home repairs for friends and family and I can say with a little more confidence now that those programs are really not worth the cost.
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