Things you should know about Findwide virus
Findwide virus is a low-level computer infection, also known as Findwide browser hijacker. Its main purpose is to affect user’s web browsers and change the homepage on them. Findwide replaces the current homepage with Search.Findwide.com and also sets it as default new tab page. Though at the first sight this website provides web search engine that does not differ from other search engines, do not be fooled! Security experts have named this program as a potentially unwanted one (PUP) not without a reason. Read below to find out how this suspicious program works.
As we have already mentioned, this program locates web browsers that are installed on the computer, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and IE, and configures their settings so that Search.Findwide.com would be set as the homepage and a default new tab page. Despite the fact that it looks completely safe at the first sight, it is not a trustworthy website. The search engine it provides delivers many sponsored search results as well as corrupted ones, which include hyperlinks leading to dubious third-party websites. Remember that clicking on these search outcomes can force you to experience web rerouting and visit untrustworthy web pages. These web pages commonly are not even related to user’s search queries; Findwide PUP seeks to promote them in order to gain pay-per-click revenue.

Unfortunately, some of such websites can be filled with infectious content, for example, hyperlinks to download fake software updates, malicious programs or simply other PUPs. If you do not want to end up on such suspicious sites, we strongly recommend you to use an alternative and more reliable search engine rather than the one Findwide redirect virus provides. However, it was noticed that it is quite challenging to remove Findwide; it is not enough just to reset browsers’ settings. You need to uninstall this program from your system, and the easiest way to do it is to employ an anti-spyware software for that. We recommend using FortectIntego anti-spyware.
How did Findwide hijack your PC?
Findwide hijacker is one of those programs that are actively promoted via bundling and similar ways of distribution. The first thing that you have to remember is that there are hundreds of free programs that have been convinced to include some optional installs into them for monetization purposes. In order to get ability to see them and then opt out of them, you should select Custom or Advanced installation of the freeware. Also, you should follow every installation step very closely and opt out of suspicious components. If Findwide virus manages to get inside the system, it may change some of your system’s settings that my lead you to the appearance of Search.Findwide.com instead of your default search engine, homepage and bookmarks. Please, do NOT ignore these changes because they clearly show that your PC is infected. You have to remove this PUP ASAP. If you do not want to use the recommended automatic removal program, navigate to page 2 to find the manual Findwide removal guide.
How to remove Findwide browser hijacker from the computer?
If you cannot stand system slowdowns, web redirects and other inconveniences that Findwide virus provokes, do not waste your time and take actions to get rid of it. You can uninstall Findwide redirect virus manually using the instructions provided below – it is actually quite easy. However, we care about your computer protection, and that is why we strongly recommend you to secure your computer with a reliable anti-spyware software. Even if you manage to uninstall this PUP manually, try scanning your computer system with SpyHunter or another reliable anti-spyware and see if there are no other suspicious programs installed on your PC. If you have any questions about Findwide removal, please contact us via “Ask Us” page.
Uninstall from Windows
Uninstall from Windows 10/8:
- Type Control Panel into the Windows search box and open the result.
- Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.

Uninstall from Windows 7/XP:
- Click on Windows Start > Control Panel (Windows XP users should click on Add/Remove Programs).
- In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.

Remove the unwanted program:
- In the Programs and Features window, look for any recently installed suspicious entries, select them, and click Uninstall.
- If User Account Control appears, click Yes to confirm, then complete the removal.

Delete from macOS
Remove the unwanted application:
- From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
- In the Applications folder, look for any suspicious entries, then drag them to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash).

Delete leftover files and folders:
- Select Go > Go to Folder.
- Enter /Library/Application Support and remove any suspicious folders related to the unwanted program.
- Repeat the same check in the /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders, deleting any suspicious entries.

- Finally, empty the Trash to permanently remove the leftovers.
Remove from Microsoft Edge
Delete unwanted extensions from MS Edge:
- Select Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and pick Extensions.
- From the list, pick the extension and click on the Gear icon.
- Click Remove.

Clear cookies and other browser data:
- Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Settings > Privacy, search, and services..
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Select Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files. (apart from passwords, although you might want to include Media licenses as well, if applicable) and click on Clear.

Restore new tab and homepage settings:
- Click the menu icon and choose Settings.
- Then find On startup section.
- Click Remove next to any suspicious startup page.
Reset MS Edge if the above steps did not work:
- Press on Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
- Click on More details arrow at the bottom of the window.
- Select Details tab.
- 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.

Instructions for Chromium-based Edge
Delete extensions from MS Edge (Chromium):
- Open Edge and click select Settings > Extensions.
- Delete unwanted extensions by clicking Remove.

Clear cache and site data:
- Click on Menu and go to Settings.
- Select Privacy, search and services.
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Under Time range, pick All time.
- Select Clear now.

Reset Chromium-based MS Edge:
- Click on Menu and select Settings.
- On the left side, pick Reset settings.
- Select Restore settings to their default values.
- Confirm with Reset.
- This will disable extensions and reset startup pages but will not delete bookmarks, saved passwords, or browsing history.

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

Reset the homepage:
- Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
- Choose Settings.
- Under Home, set your preferred homepage and new tab settings.
Clear cookies and site data:
- Click Menu and pick Settings.
- Go to Privacy & Security section.
- Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
- Click on Clear Data...
- Select Cookies and Site Data and Temporary cached files and pages, then click Clear.

Reset Mozilla Firefox
If clearing the browser as explained above did not help, reset Mozilla Firefox:
- Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click the Menu.
- Go to Help and then choose Troubleshooting Information.

- Under Give Firefox a tune up section, click on Refresh Firefox...
- Once the pop-up shows up, confirm the action by pressing on Refresh Firefox.

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

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

Change your homepage:
- Click menu and choose Settings.
- Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
- 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:
- Click on Menu and select Settings.
- In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
- Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
- Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
- Confirm with Reset settings.

Delete from Safari
Remove dangerous extensions:
- Open Safari, click Safari in the menu at the top-left of the screen, and select Preferences.
- Go to the Extensions tab, look for any suspicious entries, and click Uninstall to remove them.

Clear history and website data:
- Click Safari in the menu and pick Clear History.
- Set Clear to all history and confirm with Clear History.

Reset Safari:
- Click Safari in the menu and select Preferences > Advanced.
- Enable Show Develop menu in menu bar.
- From the menu bar, click Develop and select Empty Caches.

Did this guide help?
4 comments
denise
installed a free game requested that my home page not be changed, was changed any way
xpcman
Only after using Regedit to search for "findwide" and deliting all references was I able to remove Findwide.
Paul
I got infected while installing the Vixy Freecorder (from http://vixy.net/).
Very annoying. I had to
- remove FndWide with Add/Remove programs
- remove the tool bar from FireFox by deleting the add-on
- removing a key with regedit (as suggested by xpcman)
Sarah
thanks! just got rid of it :)