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  • Active
  • Severity: High
  • Stealing programs
  • Windows, Mac
  • Verified · Jul 2017

How to remove Search.searchlwp.com virus

A step-by-step removal guide for affected devices. Follow the verified procedure below — most readers complete it in under 10 minutes.

Olivia Morelli · Ransomware analyst

Search.searchlwp.com search engine is promoted in software bundles

The image of Search.searchlwp.com virus

Search.searchlwp.com is a suspicious search engine created by Polarity Technologies Ltd. Just like many other company’s creations, this one is also categorized as a browser hijacker.[1] After the infiltration, it might change browser’s settings, display commercial content, and monitor your browsing activities.

Spreads with Local Weather Pro application that is usually added to software packages. After the hijack, affected browser’s homepage, search engine or new tab might be changed with Search.searchlwp.com. New browser’s startup page might look useful and convenient. It allows quickly accessing weather forecast, Gmail, Yahoo, Youtube, and Amazon.

However, you should not be tricked by its appearance. The hijacker might make browsing the web unbearable. Currently, Search.searchlwp.com virus redirects searches to Yahoo. Therefore, it should not alter search results. However, it’s possible that the situation might change soon and the hijacker might become capable of including sponsored links in the search results page.

After the Search.searchlwp.com hijack, you might also notice that your computer became sluggish and browser frequently crashes. Browsing problems might occur due to the excessive amount of online ads that might be delivered on each website you visit. The hijacker generates pay-per-click revenue, so ads might annoy you a lot.

However, even bigger problems might occur after clicking such pop-ups or banners. They might lead to suspicious, misleading or potentially dangerous websites. These sites might offer to download bogus software, give an amazing discount in exchange for your private information or infect your PC with malware. Thus, these Search.searchlwp.com redirect tendencies should motivate you to get rid of the hijacker ASAP.

Moreover, this cyber parasite might collect various information about users. It might track both personally[2] and non-personally identifiable information. According to the Privacy Policy, this tool might collect IP address, browsing history, clicked ads, etc. What is more, third-party tracking technologies might be accepted as well.

If you value your privacy and do not want to be spied on by unknown people, you should remove Search.searchlwp.com as soon as it appears on Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox or another web browser. The best way to do it – run the system scan with FortectIntego or another anti-malware.

Additionally, you can opt for the manual Search.searchlwp.com removal. If you are willing to locate and delete hijacker-related entries on your own, we suggest checking the instructions at the end of this article.

The picture of Search.searchlwp.com virus

Developers rely on bundling technique

The hijacker might spread with various programs that you can download from torrents or file-sharing websites for free. However, Local Weather Pro has noticed spreading the hijacker. Thus, you should not only stay away from this program but also:

  • download necessary programs from reliable sources;
  • read the Privacy Policy and EULA;
  • choose Advanced/Custom installation instead of Quick/Recommended;
  • reject installation of additional programs by unmarking ticks near them.

This cyber parasite mostly spreads in the United States; however, users from other regions, such as Scandinavia, Russia[3] or Asia, should be aware of this sneaky distribution method in order to avoid other PUPs.

Get rid of the Search.searchlwp.com virus

There are two Search.searchlwp.com removal options – manual and automatic. Manual elimination option is more difficult than automatic. Thus, it’s recommended for skilled and determined computer users. At the end of the article, you can find illustrated instructions that will guide you through this procedure.

Meanwhile, any skills needed to remove Search.searchlwp.com automatically. All you have to do is to obtain reputable security software and run a full system scan with the help of it.

Uninstall from Windows

Uninstall from Windows 10/8:

  1. Type Control Panel into the Windows search box and open the result.
  2. Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.Uninstall from Windows 10/8

Uninstall from Windows 7/XP:

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

Remove the unwanted program:

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

Delete from macOS

Remove the unwanted application:

  1. From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
  2. In the Applications folder, look for any suspicious entries, then drag them to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash).Uninstall from Mac

Delete leftover files and folders:

  1. Select Go > Go to Folder.
  2. Enter /Library/Application Support and remove any suspicious folders related to the unwanted program.
  3. Repeat the same check in the /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders, deleting any suspicious entries.Delete leftover files from Mac
  4. Finally, empty the Trash to permanently remove the leftovers.

Reset Internet Explorer

Remove dangerous add-ons:

  1. Open Internet Explorer, click on the Gear icon (IE menu) on the top-right corner of the browser
  2. Pick Manage Add-ons.
  3. You will see a Manage Add-ons window. Here, look for suspicious plugins. Click on these entries and select Disable.Remove add-ons from Internet Explorer

Change your homepage if it was altered:

  1. Open IE and click on the Gear icon.
  2. Select Internet Options.
  3. In the General tab, delete the Home page address and replace it by your preferred one (for example, Google.com).
  4. Click Apply and then select OK.Reset IE homepage

Delete temporary files:

  1. Press on the Gear icon and select Internet Options.
  2. Under Browsing history, click Delete...
  3. Select relevant fields and press Delete.Clear temporary files from Internet Explorer

Reset Internet Explorer:

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

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 Remove.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 Settings > Privacy, search, and services..
  2. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
  3. 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.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 Remove next to any suspicious startup page.

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

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.
  5. This will disable extensions and reset startup pages but will not delete bookmarks, saved passwords, or browsing history.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 the unwanted extension 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 Settings.
  3. Under Home, set your preferred homepage and new tab settings.

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 and Temporary cached files and pages, then click 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 suspicious extensions 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 dangerous extensions:

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

Clear history and website data:

  1. Click Safari in the menu and pick Clear History.
  2. Set Clear to all history and confirm with Clear History.Clear history from Safari

Reset Safari:

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

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