How to remove Search.iminent.com virus

What is Search.iminent.com?

Search.iminent.com is a questionable search engine, which has been included to browser hijacker categoy. This means that it is capable of affecting probably all browsers (Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, etc.) that can be installed on the system and used by the user. As soon as it does that, it may start causing such unwanted activities as various system changes. Beware that it may easily change your start page or default search engine. In addition, you may notice that you can't use your favorite search engines because you are redirected from Google or Bing to Iminent Search site. Besides, you may notice continuous pop-up ads during your browsing that promote suspicious third parties. Please, do NOT click these ads because they may redirect you to unknwn and questionable websites that may be used for promoting really suspicious software. We think that these constant search.iminent.com redirects to affiliate domains is the most annoying result of having this virus inside the system. Besides, it seems that it may collect information about people's browsing habits and may record people's search terms, mostly visited websites, data that they enter when visiting them, etc. If you have already noticed that this program is interrupting you and is redirecting you to unknown places, you should scan your PC with reputable anti-spyware and remove all suspicious programs from it. Our recommended tool is Fortect Intego.

HOW CAN SEARCH.IMINENT.COM HIJACK MY COMPUTER?

Just like many other browser hijakckers and potentially unwanted programs, search.iminent.com virus is mostly spread with a help of freeware. Yes, you can easily decide that you want to make this search engine your start page or default search engine but we really don't recommend that. In order to avoid search.iminent.com infiltration, you have to start monitoring installation of the freeware because there are hundreds of free programs, such as file conventers, download managers, video streaming software and similar apps, that are used to trick people to install Iminent on their computers so that they could 'work properly' or so that they could 'improve their browsing on the web'. However, after installing Iminent Toolbar on the system, you may also receive an unwanted delivery, which is search.iminent.com. As a result, you may start noticing constant interruptions when you are browsing the Web and may even find yourself disabled from using your favorite search engines, such as Google, Yahoo or Bing. Instead of them, you may be pushed to use search.iminent.com, which is typically presented as powerful search engine capable of providing tons of useful online information. In order to avoid search.iminent.com redirects, you are highly recommended to select Custom or Advanced installation of the freeware because it will help you to opt out of this and similar questionable additions. If you want to remove this browser hijacker from your computer, please use a guide below.

HOW CAN I REMOVE SEARCH.IMINENT.COM VIRUS?

In order to remove Search.iminent.com virus, we don't recommend doing that manually because it requires extensive knowledge about computers and their architecture. Instead of that, you should follow these steps:

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.