Crawler (Virus Removal Guide) - updated Sep 2020

Crawler Removal Guide

What is Crawler?

Crawler is a potentially unwanted program that can change your search engine and start various redirects

Crawler virusCrawler virus is a potentially unwanted program that might change your search engine and interrupt your search results. Crawler.com is the browser hijacker that can get downloaded without your permission or knowledge.[1] So once the intruder is installed it can change homepage settings, set the default search engine to the needed domain, and redirect all the searches to third-party pages, advertising services, other suspicious sites. The program itself can get especially intrusive and annoying when the main potentially unwanted program runs in the background for a long time. Sponsored content can easily expose you to various dangerous pages and commercial content that promotes useless programs. This is also one of the main methods used to distribute such browser-based intruders like PUPs, adware, hijacker, and so on.

Name Crawler or Crawler.com
Type Browser hijacker
Issues The potentially unwanted program creates issues with the machine when speed and performance suffer due to continuous redirects to advertising services and sponsored pages. The exposure to such pages, third-party involvement means that your search-related data can get recorded and collected
Distribution Freeware installations can lead to such PUP infiltration because software bundling is a widely used method. Also, promotional advertisements and similar content can trigger automatic downloads of PUPs
Elimination You should rely on proper anti-malware tools and run a full system scan that helps to remove Crawler from the machine alongside either programs and applications that can create issues for you
Repair Make sure to reset browsers to default and run FortectIntego to recover from any system damage

Crawler is not a virus or malware. However, it can definitely be called a totally annoying program, a browser hijacker, and a potentially unwanted application. We say so because it may initiate lots of havoc on people's computers and seriously disrupt their browsing activity.

According to its victims and PC security experts,[2] this Crawler program may show up on the system without downloading it. After doing so, it may alert various system settings and then start initiating such irritating things as redirects to unknown websites, slowdowns, pop-up ads, and similarly annoying things.

Beware that this questionable search site may make you visit unknown and very suspicious websites when you open your browser and start searching the web. That's because it is actively used for affiliate marketing. Besides, it may also show you commercial advertisements and start collecting search terms or other information from your search queries. make sure to go straight for Crawler removal once such issues get noticed.

Crawler Crawler virus is the browser hijacker that triggers changes in most important web browser settings.

If you think that you shouldn't reveal your most visited websites, data that you enter on each of these sites, your PC's IP address, and similar details, you should remove the virus. If you have just found Crawler.com instead of your start page and default search engine, it means that it has infiltrated your machine.

In this case, you should check the system with updated anti-spyware and remove Crawler from the system. Otherwise, you should be prepared for unexpected redirects and similar issues. If there are some strange issues with your computer, try fixing them with FortectIntego that finds altered files and corrupted programs.

No matter that it can hardly infect your machine with malware, it may show you annoying banner ads, in-text advertisements, and similar notifications. In order to avoid these problems, we recommend you to check your computer with updated anti-spyware and remove Crawler.com.

Crawler.com PUPCrawler virus is the potentially unwanted program that creates issues with the system once it gets installed without your permission.

Browser hijack has most likely appeared on your computer with recently installed free programs

Just like hundreds of other potentially unwanted programs, hijacker spreads in a bundle with freeware and shareware. If you want to avoid this virus, you have to pay more attention to the installation process of such applications and, typically, find the checkmark that agrees to download PUP.

In order to see it, you should opt for Custom or Advanced installation of the freeware. After doing so, you should carefully follow every installation step and get rid of pre-checked checkmarks. If it has already managed to infiltrate your operating system, you can expect that soon it will start browser hijacking and other activities.

As soon as you spot Crawler virus run a full scan of your computer and get rid of it

If you have already started to suffer from browser redirects to unknown websites or if you have noticed an increased amount of ads during your browsing, you should check your machine for PUPs and remove Crawler when it gets detected. There is a huge possibility that this browser hijacker has just infiltrated your computer in a bundle with freeware and shareware.

In this case, you shouldn't wait for redirects to unknown and very suspicious websites because they may lead you to the infiltration of other cyber threats. For eliminating this hijacker we highly recommend you select automatic Crawler removal methods that will help you make sure that all suspicious programs are gone.

You may remove virus damage with a help of FortectIntego. SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner and Malwarebytes are recommended to detect potentially unwanted programs and viruses with all their files and registry entries that are related to them.

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Compatible with Microsoft Windows Compatible with macOS
What to do if failed?
If you failed to fix virus damage using Fortect Intego, submit a question to our support team and provide as much details as possible.
Fortect Intego has a free limited scanner. Fortect Intego offers more through scan when you purchase its full version. When free scanner detects issues, you can fix them using free manual repairs or you can decide to purchase the full version in order to fix them automatically.
Alternative Software
Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Fortect, try running SpyHunter 5.
Alternative Software
Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Intego, try running Combo Cleaner.

Getting rid of Crawler. Follow these steps

Uninstall from Windows

Clear the machine from any PUPs by following steps

Instructions for Windows 10/8  machines:

  1. Enter Control Panel into Windows search box and hit Enter or click on the search result.
  2. Under Programs, select Uninstall a program. Uninstall from Windows 1
  3. From the list, find the entry of the suspicious program.
  4. Right-click on the application and select Uninstall.
  5. If User Account Control shows up, click Yes.
  6. Wait till uninstallation process is complete and click OK. Uninstall from Windows 2

If you are Windows 7/XP user, proceed with the following instructions:

  1. Click on Windows Start > Control Panel located on the right pane (if you are Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
  2. In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program. Uninstall from Windows 7/XP
  3. Pick the unwanted application by clicking on it once.
  4. At the top, click Uninstall/Change.
  5. In the confirmation prompt, pick Yes.
  6. Click OK once the removal process is finished.

Delete from macOS

Remove items from Applications folder:

  1. From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
  2. In the Applications folder, look for all related entries.
  3. Click on the app and drag it to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash) Uninstall from Mac 1

To fully remove an unwanted app, you need to access Application Support, LaunchAgents, and LaunchDaemons folders and delete relevant files:

  1. Select Go > Go to Folder.
  2. Enter /Library/Application Support and click Go or press Enter.
  3. In the Application Support folder, look for any dubious entries and then delete them.
  4. Now enter /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders the same way and terminate all the related .plist files. Uninstall from Mac 2

Remove from Microsoft Edge

Delete unwanted extensions from MS Edge:

  1. Select Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and pick Extensions.
  2. From the list, pick the extension and click on the Gear icon.
  3. Click on Uninstall at the bottom. Remove extensions from Edge

Clear cookies and other browser data:

  1. Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Privacy & security.
  2. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
  3. Select everything (apart from passwords, although you might want to include Media licenses as well, if applicable) and click on Clear. Clear Edge browsing data

Restore new tab and homepage settings:

  1. Click the menu icon and choose Settings.
  2. Then find On startup section.
  3. Click Disable if you found any suspicious domain.

Reset MS Edge if the above steps did not work:

  1. Press on Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
  2. Click on More details arrow at the bottom of the window.
  3. Select Details tab.
  4. Now scroll down and locate every entry with Microsoft Edge name in it. Right-click on each of them and select End Task to stop MS Edge from running. Reset MS Edge

If this solution failed to help you, you need to use an advanced Edge reset method. Note that you need to backup your data before proceeding.

  1. Find the following folder on your computer: C:\\Users\\%username%\\AppData\\Local\\Packages\\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe.
  2. Press Ctrl + A on your keyboard to select all folders.
  3. Right-click on them and pick Delete Advanced MS Edge reset 1
  4. Now right-click on the Start button and pick Windows PowerShell (Admin).
  5. When the new window opens, copy and paste the following command, and then press Enter:

    Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\\AppXManifest.xml” -Verbose Advanced MS Edge reset 2

Instructions for Chromium-based Edge

Delete extensions from MS Edge (Chromium):

  1. Open Edge and click select Settings > Extensions.
  2. Delete unwanted extensions by clicking Remove. Remove extensions from Chromium Edge

Clear cache and site data:

  1. Click on Menu and go to Settings.
  2. Select Privacy, search and services.
  3. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
  4. Under Time range, pick All time.
  5. Select Clear now. Clear browser data from Chroum Edge

Reset Chromium-based MS Edge:

  1. Click on Menu and select Settings.
  2. On the left side, pick Reset settings.
  3. Select Restore settings to their default values.
  4. Confirm with Reset. Reset Chromium Edge

Remove from Mozilla Firefox (FF)

Remove dangerous extensions:

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click on the Menu (three horizontal lines at the top-right of the window).
  2. Select Add-ons.
  3. In here, select unwanted plugin and click Remove. Remove extensions from Firefox

Reset the homepage:

  1. Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
  2. Choose Options.
  3. Under Home options, enter your preferred site that will open every time you newly open the Mozilla Firefox.

Clear cookies and site data:

  1. Click Menu and pick Settings.
  2. Go to Privacy & Security section.
  3. Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
  4. Click on Clear Data…
  5. Select Cookies and Site Data, as well as Cached Web Content and press Clear. Clear cookies and site data from Firefox

Reset Mozilla Firefox

If clearing the browser as explained above did not help, reset Mozilla Firefox:

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click the Menu.
  2. Go to Help and then choose Troubleshooting Information. Reset Firefox 1
  3. Under Give Firefox a tune up section, click on Refresh Firefox…
  4. Once the pop-up shows up, confirm the action by pressing on Refresh Firefox. Reset Firefox 2

Remove from Google Chrome

Delete malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

  1. Open Google Chrome, click on the Menu (three vertical dots at the top-right corner) and select More tools > Extensions.
  2. In the newly opened window, you will see all the installed extensions. Uninstall all the suspicious plugins that might be related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove. Remove extensions from Chrome

Clear cache and web data from Chrome:

  1. Click on Menu and pick Settings.
  2. Under Privacy and security, select Clear browsing data.
  3. Select Browsing history, Cookies and other site data, as well as Cached images and files.
  4. Click Clear data. Clear cache and web data from Chrome

Change your homepage:

  1. Click menu and choose Settings.
  2. Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
  3. Click on Open a specific or set of pages and click on three dots to find the Remove option.

Reset Google Chrome:

If the previous methods did not help you, reset Google Chrome to eliminate all the unwanted components:

  1. Click on Menu and select Settings.
  2. In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
  3. Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
  4. Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
  5. Confirm with Reset settings. Reset Chrome 2

Delete from Safari

Remove unwanted extensions from Safari:

  1. Click Safari > Preferences…
  2. In the new window, pick Extensions.
  3. Select the unwanted extension and select Uninstall. Remove extensions from Safari

Clear cookies and other website data from Safari:

  1. Click Safari > Clear History…
  2. From the drop-down menu under Clear, pick all history.
  3. Confirm with Clear History. Clear cookies and website data from Safari

Reset Safari if the above-mentioned steps did not help you:

  1. Click Safari > Preferences…
  2. Go to Advanced tab.
  3. Tick the Show Develop menu in menu bar.
  4. From the menu bar, click Develop, and then select Empty Caches. Reset Safari

After uninstalling this potentially unwanted program (PUP) and fixing each of your web browsers, we recommend you to scan your PC system with a reputable anti-spyware. This will help you to get rid of Crawler registry traces and will also identify related parasites or possible malware infections on your computer. For that you can use our top-rated malware remover: FortectIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes.

How to prevent from getting browser hijacker

Protect your privacy – employ a VPN

There are several ways how to make your online time more private – you can access an incognito tab. However, there is no secret that even in this mode, you are tracked for advertising purposes. There is a way to add an extra layer of protection and create a completely anonymous web browsing practice with the help of Private Internet Access VPN. This software reroutes traffic through different servers, thus leaving your IP address and geolocation in disguise. Besides, it is based on a strict no-log policy, meaning that no data will be recorded, leaked, and available for both first and third parties. The combination of a secure web browser and Private Internet Access VPN will let you browse the Internet without a feeling of being spied or targeted by criminals. 

No backups? No problem. Use a data recovery tool

If you wonder how data loss can occur, you should not look any further for answers – human errors, malware attacks, hardware failures, power cuts, natural disasters, or even simple negligence. In some cases, lost files are extremely important, and many straight out panic when such an unfortunate course of events happen. Due to this, you should always ensure that you prepare proper data backups on a regular basis.

If you were caught by surprise and did not have any backups to restore your files from, not everything is lost. Data Recovery Pro is one of the leading file recovery solutions you can find on the market – it is likely to restore even lost emails or data located on an external device.

About the author
Julie Splinters
Julie Splinters - Anti-malware specialist

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References
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