What is WinArcher program doing in my computer?
WinArcher virus is not a malware-type[1] software; however, its existence on your PC is not a good sign, either. The only reason why we mentioned the word “virus” is that computer users tend to call WinArcher this way after discovering it on the computer system. Once installed, this questionable piece of software starts digging the system for certain information, for example, IP address[2], installed software, search queries and search history related data, and then transmits such information to an adware distribution network. The software is not analyzed precisely yet, so we cannot provide more details about it. One thing is for sure – it works as a data collector, and currently it is unknown where such data is going to be used. Therefore, it is highly recommended to remove WinArcher PUP from the system without any hesitations. We doubt that you need such component in your PC, especially because it lacks beneficial features.
We assume that collected data might be used to deliver targeted advertising to the victim. Typically, adware programs collect information related to user’s browsing and use it to select individual ads for each victim. If you use a computer that is contaminated with some kind of adware, then WinArcher file is likely to be installed as well, and it is known to be responsible for data transmission between your PC and adware distribution network. It is advisable to take care of WinArcher removal in time otherwise, your computer might start working slowly, and the quality of your browsing experience might go down as well. For WinArcher removal, we suggest using anti-spyware programs that can precisely delete all spyware-related files from the computer system. We recommend using FortectIntego or MalwarebytesMalwarebytes software.
How did I get infected with adware?
Adware spreads via software bundles (in most cases)[3]. You can also install adware programs if you tend to browse the Internet carelessly – it is easy to install an ad-supported program because the majority of free programs available online are ad-supported. We suggest reading comments online about computer programs before installing them on your PC. If you are looking for ways to avoid ad-supported programs, never install your downloads using Default/Standard settings because they typically contain a few statements saying that you agree to install suggested third-party applications or browser toolbars[4]. These additional programs usually appear to be adware or browser hijacker-type programs, and it is better to keep your PC free of them. To drop these additional items off, just choose Custom or Advanced installation option and deselect suggested third-party applications manually. Finish the installation and enjoy your new program, but make sure it doesn’t send you annoying pop-up advertisements as links integrated into them can cause danger to your PC!
How to remove WinArcher adware?
If you want to remove WinArcher, Archer.dll and other adware-related files successfully, you have to find a program that is related to it. It can be hard to understand which program brought this file into your PC system; therefore, we suggest using automatic spyware removal tool for this task. It can quickly complete WinArcher removal and save you tons of time. If you do not have an anti-spyware or anti-malware program yet, consider trying one of the programs that our team recommends using. You can find a list of them below, and you can read their reviews[5] on our Software 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.
Reset Internet Explorer
Remove dangerous add-ons:
- Open Internet Explorer, click on the Gear icon (IE menu) on the top-right corner of the browser
- Pick Manage Add-ons.
- You will see a Manage Add-ons window. Here, look for suspicious plugins. Click on these entries and select Disable.

Change your homepage if it was altered:
- Open IE and click on the Gear icon.
- Select Internet Options.
- In the General tab, delete the Home page address and replace it by your preferred one (for example, Google.com).
- Click Apply and then select OK.

Delete temporary files:
- Press on the Gear icon and select Internet Options.
- Under Browsing history, click Delete...
- Select relevant fields and press Delete.

Reset Internet Explorer:
- Click on Gear icon > Internet options and select Advanced tab.
- Select Reset.
- In the new window, check Delete personal settings and select Reset.

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
Fione
I couldnt delete WinArcher for some reason! I removed it using antimalware, because for some reason it didnt let me to delete it.
Lena
Thanks so much for providing this information. I was really lost and didnt know what to do with that WinArcher file.
alish08
Terrible! Just terrible! How someone dares to distribute apps like WinArcher? Its totally malicious, in my opinion!
Gerbert
Just deleted WinArcher, thanks!