Remove Power Handler virus (Tutorial)

Power Handler might turn your browser into money making machine

Screenshot of Power Handler adware

Power Handler is presented as a program that helps to schedule various tasks on the computer, for example, shutting it done or turning into sleep mode. However, this functionality should not trick you. After the installation, you won’t be able to enjoy these features without annoying redirects and ads appearing every time you browse the web.

Power Handler works as an adware that generates income from online advertising. Thus, after the installation, it makes several system changes and starts displaying tons of annoying commercial content. This ad-supported application might:

deliver pop-ups informing about fake software updates;
show ads that offer to download suspicious programs or provides misleading shopping deals;
display banners on your favorite sites;
turn random text into hyperlinks;
open new browser’s tab or trigger sudden redirects to sponsored sites.

The problem with Power Handler virus is that these commercial offers might be malicious or lead to harmful websites. For instance, shopping offers might redirect to phishing sites. Additionally, you might be tricked into entering a site that offers to download an unknown plugin or call fake Microsoft technicians^[1] to solve various computer-related problems.

Undoubtedly, these briefly discussed Power Handler redirect tendencies is the main reason why you should uninstall this application from your Windows computer. We do not say that all these ads are dangerous. However, some of them might be a part of massive malvertising campaign. Thus, you can never be sure which ad is safe to click and which is not.

Additionally, adware programs are often capable of tracking various information about users in order to apply targeted marketing^[2] strategy. Thus, if you do not like the idea of being spied on, you should consider Power Handler removal as well.

The quickest way to remove Power Handler adware from the PC is to employ Fortect Intego or another anti-spyware. Once you run a full system scan, the program will delete the ad-supported app with all its components. This would be a crucial action if this task scheduling program was installed together with freeware.

The image of Power Handler virus

Potentially unwanted programs are promoted in software packages

Power Handler hijack might be unexpected. The program might sneak inside your device if you install freeware or shareware incorrectly, meaning using Quick/Standard installation settings. Keep in mind that this setup does not openly disclose about third-party apps, and let them get inside without informing the user.

If you want to avoid such surprises, you should always use Advanced/Custom settings and monitor the process. If you see the list of “additional” or “optional” downloads, reject these offers without any delay. Security researchers from Germany^[3] note that most of the time they are PUPs.

Uninstall guide of the Power Handler adware

You should be able to remove Power Handler just like any other program from your computer. Go to Control Panel, find it in the list of installed apps, double-click it and follow the uninstallation guide. However, it might not be enough if the program was installed in a software package. In this case, you should follow the guide below.

Complete Power Handler removal might require investigating the system and looking for other suspicious apps, as well as eliminating unknown browser extensions. However, you can scan the device with security software and look up for potentially dangerous apps automatically.

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.

How to remove Power Handler virus

Power Handler might turn your browser into money making machine

Potentially unwanted programs are promoted in software packages