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INSTALLED WITHOUT PERMISSION

Forum|Forum|9 months ago
October 9, 2025
7 replies
5822 views

Can anyone explain to me why Adobe Photoshop Express was suddenly installed on my machine? installed the newest windows update and after turning on it installed and this was without my prompt or permission. I saw PSExpressBroker.exe and PSExpressCore.exe running in Task Manager. File Explorer showed many adobe files created at the exact time of the PC boot! I don't use or have Adobe on my PC . Or I didn't. There are no Adobe entries in MS Program and Features, so no entry to uninstall, but plenty of files in Program Files, and a handful in Program Data. I want this off my pc and want to now how as it has been installed without me selecting to install it or asking for my permission. My pc speed has gone through the floor because of all these programs running in the background...

Performance

Correct answer Rose DV

Hi @anthony_2557, @DT-AMRV, @Shigeomix, @Jmack2467

Thank you all for flagging this - I completely understand how unsettling it is to find software running on your machine without explicitly installing it.

Adobe Photoshop Express was distributed as part of a Windows Update for eligible devices. We recognize this wasn't a great experience for users who didn't want the app, and will pass along the sentiment to the correct team.

To stop it running in the background (Windows):
Go to Settings > Apps > Installed Apps > Photoshop Express > ⋯ > Advanced Options, then turn off Run at login and click Terminate. You can also uninstall it from that same menu.

For IT admins or enterprise users who need guidance on managing this deployment across devices, this HelpX article covers how to handle existing installations: https://helpx.adobe.com/enterprise/kb/adobe-express-photos-existing-users-admin-guide.html

Sorry for the frustration this caused!

Rose

G

Gucek

Participant

this piece of garbage just installed itself WITHOUT ASKING together with Reader. what a joke Adobe has become.

Rose DV

Community Manager

Hi Gucek, I hear the frustration, that's a fair thing to be annoyed about if you didn't choose to install it. I have passed this thread along to the appropriate team for feedback.

Adobe Express Photos sometimes gets bundled in with Reader/Acrobat installs and can be added by default unless it's deselected during a custom install. Good news is you've already found it in Programs and Features, so you can go ahead and uninstall it from there without affecting Reader or Acrobat.

Rose

E

edavis@imdxinc.com

Participant

This is typical Adobe—loading your machine with a bunch of crap. You remove it, and it just comes back.

Have you ever looked in Windows Credential Manager? Adobe dumps its junk in there too.

In over 30 years working in IT, I honestly can't think of another piece of software that leaves a worse footprint on a Windows machine. It's bloated, persistent, and constantly reinstalls components users never asked for.

Jmack2467

Participant

I think time has provided the answer to this situation. Apparently, Windows decided to give users a neat little free bonus, Adobe, installed in a standard windows update. So you can’t find where it was, it was an automatic update. (They mentioned that it was a big pain for a lot of people so, ummm, ha, sorry!) I still don’t know what activated it, but it seems to be just sitting there. It’s not an active running function, just an unwanted hitchhiker. So I threw away all the icons I could and hid the rest. It’s like it’s not even there… one more thing we learn to live with...

Rose DV

Correct answer

Community Manager

Hi @anthony_2557, @DT-AMRV, @Shigeomix, @Jmack2467

Thank you all for flagging this - I completely understand how unsettling it is to find software running on your machine without explicitly installing it.

Adobe Photoshop Express was distributed as part of a Windows Update for eligible devices. We recognize this wasn't a great experience for users who didn't want the app, and will pass along the sentiment to the correct team.

To stop it running in the background (Windows):
Go to Settings > Apps > Installed Apps > Photoshop Express > ⋯ > Advanced Options, then turn off Run at login and click Terminate. You can also uninstall it from that same menu.

For IT admins or enterprise users who need guidance on managing this deployment across devices, this HelpX article covers how to handle existing installations: https://helpx.adobe.com/enterprise/kb/adobe-express-photos-existing-users-admin-guide.html

Sorry for the frustration this caused!

Rose

Jmack2467

Participant

I did NOT install Adobe Photo… it suddenly appeared as a hitch hiker connected to, of all things, my volume. I clicked UP, as we do, and the volume appeared, with a long black narrow box beside it that says PSExpressCore.exe in the box. There is nothing to delete, nothing to stop, and I even tried system restore (back up several days) and nothing works! This pig just completely took over my computer (which is still running windows 10). And NOW, I click on the net and can’t even go online! Although my comp assures me that I am connected AND online, Google will NOT OPEN. Good thing I have a backup comp with windows 11. How the hell do I get that damn garbage out of my system?

Please send an email to [moderator removed personal information] asap

Rose DV

Community Manager

I am removing your email from the message, since this is a public forum, FYI @Jmack2467!

Rose DV

Community Manager

Hi @Jmack2467,

I'm sorry you're dealing with this, especially the internet connectivity issue on top of everything else. To remove Photoshop Express on Windows 10, try the following:

1. Go to Settings > Apps > Apps & Features
2. Search for Photoshop Express and select it
3. Click Uninstall

If it doesn't appear there, you can also try searching for it in the Microsoft Store — if it shows as installed, you should be able to uninstall from there.

For the connectivity issue, that's unlikely to be caused by PS Express itself, but if uninstalling resolves it please do let us know. If the internet problem persists after uninstalling, it may be worth contacting Microsoft support as it could be related to the Windows Update itself.

Rose

Chris31788798aso1

Participant

I recommend you file a consumer fraud complaint with your states AG office.

S

Shigeomix

Participant

This is not the same issue as the “sudden installation without permission” cases reported here, but starting today, Photoshop Express has suddenly begun running in my system tray.
My environment is Windows 11 Home 24H2.

I had previously installed Photoshop Express from the Microsoft Store (UWP version) just to test it, but I didn’t find it particularly useful at the time. After closing it once, I never used it again, and I did not uninstall it.

I am a Creative Cloud subscriber and use the full version of Photoshop regularly, but I have never really had a use case for Photoshop Express. However, as of today, the app suddenly started to remain resident in the system tray, and I could not find any in-app setting to disable or control this background behavior.

As a workaround, I navigated to
Windows Settings → Apps → Installed Apps → Photoshop Express → “…” → Advanced Options,
then turned off “Run at login” and clicked “Terminate” to stop it.
From this same menu, it’s also possible to uninstall the app.

I’m not sure what caused this sudden change in behavior, but it’s quite unsettling when an application starts running automatically without the user’s explicit consent.
If this is related to a recent update or a known issue, I would greatly appreciate clarification or an option to disable background activity in a future update.

D

DT-AMRV

Participant

Exactly what happend to me. And now a popup opens constantly nagging me. I can't find anywhere to change notifications or, better yet, delete this nuisance. This popup has NO settings or anything to make it STOP. Beyond frustrating, it's starting to really p!ss me off.

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