Dangers that Search.searchlson.com virus can cause
If you have noticed that Search.searchlson.com (Live Sports Online Now) has become your homepage address, and it also shows up each time you open a new tab in your browser, you should be careful. This website is not a safe search engine, although it might give you that impression at the first sight. However, this site is related to Search.searchlson.com browser hijacker, which, according to computer security professionals, is a potentially unwanted program (PUP). This program adds a browser extension that changes user’s browser’s settings with an intention to promote the aforementioned website and search engine in it. This search engine mostly displays sponsored search results since its primary function is to generate pay-per-click revenue for the developers of this suspicious PUP. Although it directs to Yahoo search after the user enters a search query, you should not think that these results are reliable. You will soon notice that the majority of them are labeled as ads, but be careful – clicking on them can open vague websites that do not look trustworthy, or, even worse, open safe-looking sites that are actually deceptive. For your own safety, stay away from offers to install programs or updates, do not provide any personal data and think before clicking on flashy banners and attractive ads, otherwise, you might end up revealing sensitive data to untrustworthy parties or install a malicious program on your PC.

Search.searchlson.com redirects are annoying, and they also make the computer run slow. However, there is another issue, and that is data collection. This PUP collects personally non-identifiable data, as its privacy policy states. However, this privacy policy also reveals that this program reveals this information to third-party companies. Let us list the types of information that this PUP collects. First of all, it collects user’s browsing history, monitors how much time the user spends on certain websites, what does he/she click on, and what search queries does the user make. Obviously, such information can contain personally identifiable details as well. If you do not want to allow this app to track you, you should remove Search.searchlson.com from your PC ASAP. You can do it manually or with a help of Reimage.
How did this program hijack your computer?
Just like the rest of browser hijackers, this one can be installed either with or without user’s approval. In fact, it can ONLY be installed with user’s permission, but in some cases, users do not even know that they do allow this program to enter their computers. So how does it happen?
Computer users love free programs, however, if you like to download free applications from the Internet, there are some things that you should know. First of all, the majority of free applications promote third-party software and suggest users to install them in conjunction with them. Since the vast of computer users tend to rush through the installation process, they fail to notice information about extra programs, which is hidden behind Default/Standard settings. These parameters are typically pre-selected for computer users. If you do not want to install unknown programs accidentally, you should select Custom or Advanced mode and then uncheck all suspicious components added to your program.
How to remove Search.searchlson.com browser hijacker?
You should never rely on web search engines that you are unfamiliar with. It is always a good idea to depend on a good old Google or the real Yahoo search since these companies have gained their reputation through years and they rarely disappoint the user. Before you use these search engines, you have to eliminate this browser hijacker from your PC. You can do that with an anti-spyware program or manually. Search.searchlson.com removal instructions are given below.
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.

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