What is Akamai Netsession client and is it safe to Remove It?

You might come across a program called Akamai netsession client developed by Akamai technologies while checking out programs installed in your PC, Akamai net session is an interface program installed by Akamai to improve your downloads by Akamai. But you might have the question that, “I have not installed, where did it came from?” or “Should I remove it?” or “If I remove it, will there be any harm to my computer or data?” or “What does it do?”. We will answer all of your questions in this post and also will give you complete information about Akamai netsession interface.

What Is Akamai Netsession?

akamai-netsession-client

Akamai net session interface is a download manager that helps to increase the speed and quality of downloads done through the internet. It is a tool that will help you enjoy faster, more reliable applications, data and media downloads from a variety of sources you choose. When you download software from companies offering PDF files, documents, and media streams, there’s a good chance that download is powered by Akamai NetSession Interface.

Let’s say what Wikipedia has to say about this,

“Akamai delivers content from other end-users’ computers, in a form of peer-to-peer networking. When users request a download of some large files served by this system, it prompts them to download and install “Akamai NetSession Interface,” a download manager used to reduce download time and to increase quality. However, this software operates not merely as a download manager (delivering content from the Internet to the user’s computer) but also as a peer-to-peer server, delivering content cached on the user’s computer to other users’ computers.”

Read more at wikipedia page

How did akamai netsession client got installed on your PC?

Akamai netsession client usually gets installed in your PC as it comes in a bundle with other software or programs, sometimes also with games you install on your PC. Most of the times, the reason is it got installed with other software which you didn’t notice because you were in a hurry to tick “I agree” button while installing a software 😉

How does Akamai Net session client work?

Akamai Net session allows for transfers between those games that have the same files you are updating to seamlessly. It is not a physical connection to your PC, it’s more like a Door Way into a virtual Storage pit that your computer transfers files to and from.

Since the game is always updating with new content every week, the game its self needs a way to send you patches so you don’t have to wait for it when you do end up wanting to play it. Another noted Game that uses the same system is World of Warcraft as well as many video Broadcasting software. Uninstalling it will have no ill effects outside of If you decide you want to use the program it was attached to and there was a recent patch, you are going to have to wait and download it to use the program again.

Thus, Its a Software Patching service that a lot of top named developers use to stream patches quicker to help the End User (you). It does nothing if you uninstall it works in the background if it’s installed.

Akamai Netsession Interface Features :

  • It is a software that helps to deliver faster, more reliable downloads.
  • It is an extension of Akamai’s global server network that helps companies and their customers complete downloads easily.
  • It is extremely secure and supports SSL security.

Read this: how to clear cache in google chrome

Should you remove Akamai Netsession client interface?

First of all, you need to know that it is not a system file and just an add-on to boost your downloads and streams from akamai and some other platforms. Thus, it is totally up to you if you want to uninstall it or not. if you are worried that it might be harmful malware or threat to your computer, you need to know,

  • It is not spyware, malware, or other intrusive software.
  • It is not a security threat and does not view or share any private data on your machine.

The company itself says, “It is not permanently installed on your machine; you have the option to remove it at any time.”

Conclusion

It is safe to keep the Akamai net session client on your computer and it is totally up to you if you want to remove it. We hope you liked the post. Share it with your friends so that they can know it is just an add-on for PC and not any malware and safe to uninstall or remove it. Thanks for reading 🙂

11 thoughts on “What is Akamai Netsession client and is it safe to Remove It?

  1. you sound way too biased

    and don’t start an explanation to someone with
    “First of all” unless you want things to go from bad to worse.

    it’s on my machine and I Don’t Game so yah.. pretty sure don’t @#$% want it.

  2. Seems to me like a way for companies to save on bandwidth by putting that bandwidth expense on the consumer….it may benefit the consumer a little (at the cost of “unused” bandwidth, not a problem as long as the consumer is not on a capped service) but the true beneficiary is the companies that use it. It probably saves the company tons of bandwidth/money. In my opinion it is never ok for a company to benefit at the consumers expense, no matter how small the expense (no, costs for goods and services are not the type of expense I’m referring to). We should be given to the option to opt out of this method of delivery and given a proper explanation, such as the one in this article, as to how the delivery method works. Just my “2 cents” on the topic.

    1. well said, and I agree, having your pc become part of serving up files for others without consent is wrong, period.

  3. Just to add to my previous comment, I’m probably not going to uninstall it. I just feel like it should be given as an option when installing software, similar to how we are asked if we want to allow data to be collected for quality assurance purposes.

  4. May be some big companies can save a lot of traffic data, but on my home computer akamai.net use about 25 % of all data consume and that is very, very bad on a wireless broadband where every GB must be paid for.

  5. Akamai does not come right out and say it, but the reason NetSession is installed on your computer is to allow them to use your computer to “upstream” content to other users. By installing NetSession, you are allowing Akamai to use your idle bandwidth to upload files to other Akamai users.
    “The information that Akamai does capture is similar to a web server and that information is utilized for troubleshooting and network performance monitoring only.” That means that NetSession continually sends information about your computer to Akamai.

    They say that NetSession will only use your computer when it is “idle or utilizing minimal network resources.” That means that NetSession is constantly monitoring your network use, and sending that information to Akamai. And since bandwidth usage varies from second to second, that info must be sent up to Akamai a lot. Wait a minute, didn’t they just say they only captured the sort of info that web servers capture? Web servers don’t capture info on bandwidth use. What other information does Akamai capture? I could not find any specifics on their site.

    So if you install NetSession, you will be joining a peer-to-peer network, and allowing Akamai to deliver files from your computer at times when Akamai deems you to be utilizing your bandwidth minimally.

    I also have a security concern about the files I am receiving from NetSession. It seems like it would not be difficult to download a file using NetSession, modify it to carry a virus payload, and then leave that computer idle, and wait for NetSession to transmit the infected file to other NetSession users. I would hope that Akamai has taken steps to address this concern, but I can’t find any information on that.

  6. ” Most of the times, the reason is it got installed with other software which you didn’t notice because you were in hurry to tick “I agree” button while installing a software 😉…”

    Haha, I’m sure you read every last word of a 60 page document before clicking accept don’t you. Ya bell head.

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