2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam. How to remove? (Uninstall guide)
2018 Annual Visitor Survey is a scam which tries to trick users into believing they won a prize
2018 Annual Visitor Survey is nothing but scam which is almost identical to 2017 Annual Visitor Survey This fake pop-up tries to mislead unsuspecting users in thinking that, after completing a quick survey of 4 questions they can win a prize. Victims of this hoax are promised to get an expensive gift at the end of the poll in exchange for their participation.
| Name | 2018 Annual Visitor Survey |
|---|---|
| Type | Scam |
| Caused by | Adware |
| Main symptoms | Continuous alerts on Chrome, Firefox, Safari or other web browser |
| Main dangers | Exposing your personal information, being redirected to infected website |
| Elimination | You can get rid of 2018 Annual Visitor Survey by running a full system scan with Reimage and removing adware from the system |
To involve people into this fraud, 2018 Annual Visitor Survey offers[1] an iPad, iPhone or Samsung Galaxy. However, the promised “prize” is bogus. After completing the questionnaire, you are shown various advertisements urging you to buy offered products. Despite the promises, you will never get a free gift. Remember that if the deal sounds too good to be true, it most likely is.
Alternatively, you might be prompted to enter some personal details, such as e-mail, phone number or similar. This information is used to send you spam e-mails or involve you to constant advertising of unwanted products/services. Additionally, you might be asked to buy some bogus software that you definitely do not need. Therefore, we advise you to remove 2018 Annual Visitor Survey from Chrome, Firefox or any other web browser immediately.
What should you remove? The reason you are prompted continuously to complete fake surveys is caused by an adware program that might have invaded your machine without your approval. It can attack any browser, including Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox or Safari.
The name of the survey is typically associated with the browser name, such as “Chrome 2018 Annual Visitor Survey,” “Safari Annual Visitor Survey,” “Firefox visitor survey,” etc. This is done to emphasize the legitimacy of the survey. However, it is merely a scam, and these crooks should never be trusted.
Click 'Start -> Control Panel -> Programs and Features' (if you are 'Windows XP' user, click on 'Add/Remove Programs').
If you are 'Windows 10 / Windows 8' user, then right-click in the lower left corner of the screen. Once 'Quick Access Menu' shows up, select 'Control Panel' and 'Uninstall a Program'.
Right click on each of suspicious entries and select 'Uninstall'
Cick 'Go' and select 'Applications'
Click on every malicious entry and select 'Move to Trash'
Click on menu icon and select 'Manage add-ons'
Right click on each of malicious entries and select 'Disable'
Delete malicious URL, enter your desired domain name and click 'Apply' to save changes
Go to 'Advanced' tab and click on 'Reset' button. Now select 'Delete personal settings' and click on 'Reset' button again
Go to Settings and select 'Choose what to clear'
Select 'Clear' button
Open the start menu and select 'Task Manager'
Right-click 'Microsoft Edge' and select 'Go to details'
Select 'More details' if 'Go to details' option fails to show up
Find Microsoft Edge entries and select 'End Task'
Go to Microsoft Edge folder on your computer, right-click every entry and click 'Delete'
Find Windows PowerShell, right-click it and select 'Run as administrator'
Copy and paste a required command and press 'Enter'
Click on menu icon and select 'Add-ons'
Select 'Extensions' and look for malicious entries. Click 'Remove' to get rid of each of them
Click on menu icon and then on '?'. Select 'Troubleshooting Information'
Click on 'Reset Firefox' button for a couple of times
Click on menu icon. Select 'Tools' and 'Extensions'
Look for malicious entries and delete each of them by clicking on the Trash bin icon
When in 'Settings', select 'Manage search engines...'
Click 'X' to remove malicious URLs
When in 'Settings', scroll down to 'Reset browser settings' button and click on it
Click on 'Reset' button to complete your removal
Click on 'Safari' and select 'Preferences'
Go to 'Extensions' and uninstall malicious add-ons
Click on 'Safari' and select 'Reset Safari...'
Select all options and click on 'Reset' button
2018 Annual Visitor Survey adware might cause additional symptoms on your PC
As soon as adware, which is responsible for showing fake ads on your browser, is installed, it starts causing these unwanted activities that typically bother PC users:
- Redirects to dubious websites (unfortunately, these redirects can lead you to malware-infested websites which can cause viruses on your computer);
- Installation of additional malware (typically, browser helper objects[2] and similar components are spread in a bundle with adware. They might be installed without your permission);
- System slowdowns and crashes. (Because of ad-supported software, your browser takes a long time to load websites).
Ultimately, the adware on your PC will multiply quickly and make your browsing experience almost impossible to perform. Without a doubt, 2018 Annual Visitor Survey removal is your only option if you want to keep your machine at its best state. Reimage can delete all the unwanted programs from your computer quickly.
Adware relies on questionable distribution methods
Inexperienced computer users often do not understand the concept of adware distribution. They think that malicious programs commonly enter computers without any action taken by the user. However, in most cases, the user is the one that triggers the infection.
The most prominent adware distribution method is bundling. This deceptive marketing technique is prevalent amongst free software developers. They rely on inexperienced and inattentive users to use the Default/Recommended installation mode. However, hidden components can be declined in Advanced/Custom settings. Therefore, we can assure you that Default method is never the best way to install software.
Additionally, make sure you download software updates from legitimate sources only, as fake updates are popular amongst crooks.
Delete 2018 Annual Visitor Survey popup from your machine
To stop all the undesired effects adware brings you should remove 2018 Annual Visitor Survey adware from your machine. Luckily, deletion of adware should not be a problem, as long as it is taken care of early.
To remove 2018 Annual Visitor Survey manually, follow our guide below this article. However, please make sure you follow each step with caution as the incorrect procedure will fail to remove the virus.
If you lack computer knowledge, we do not advise proceeding with manual 2018 Annual Visitor Survey removal. You should install sturdy security software on your computer instead. You can choose from one of the options below.
You can remove 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam automatically with a help of one of these programs: Reimage, Plumbytes Anti-MalwareWebroot SecureAnywhere AntiVirus, Malwarebytes Anti Malware. We recommend these applications because they can easily delete potentially unwanted programs and viruses with all their files and registry entries that are related to them.
Manual 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam Removal Guide:
Remove 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam from Windows systems
To get rid of adware which is hiding behind 018 Annual Visitor Survey from Windows, use the following steps:
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Click Start → Control Panel → Programs and Features (if you are Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
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If you are Windows 10 / Windows 8 user, then right-click in the lower left corner of the screen. Once Quick Access Menu shows up, select Control Panel and Uninstall a Program.
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Uninstall 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam and related programs
Here, look for 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam or any other recently installed suspicious programs. -
Uninstall them and click OK to save these changes.
Get rid of 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam from Mac OS X system
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If you are using OS X, click Go button at the top left of the screen and select Applications.
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Wait until you see Applications folder and look for 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam or any other suspicious programs on it. Now right click on every of such entries and select Move to Trash.
Delete 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam from Internet Explorer (IE)
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Remove dangerous add-ons
Open Internet Explorer, click on the Gear icon (IE menu) on the top right corner of the browser and choose Manage Add-ons. -
You will see a Manage Add-ons window. Here, look for 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam and other suspicious plugins. Disable these entries by clicking Disable:
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Change your homepage if it was altered by virus:
Click on the gear icon (menu) on the top right corner of the browser and select Internet Options. Stay in General tab. -
Here, remove malicious URL and enter preferable domain name. Click Apply to save changes.
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Reset Internet Explorer
Click on the gear icon (menu) again and select Internet options. Go to Advanced tab. - Here, select Reset.
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When in the new window, check Delete personal settings and select Reset again to complete 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam removal.
Eliminate 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam from Microsoft Edge
Reset Microsoft Edge settings (Method 1):
- Launch Microsoft Edge app and click More (three dots at the top right corner of the screen).
- Click Settings to open more options.
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Once Settings window shows up, click Choose what to clear button under Clear browsing data option.
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Here, select all what you want to remove and click Clear.
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Now you should right-click on the Start button (Windows logo). Here, select Task Manager.
- When in Processes tab, search for Microsoft Edge.
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Right-click on it and choose Go to details option. If can’t see Go to details option, click More details and repeat previous steps.
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When Details tab shows up, find every entry with Microsoft Edge name in it. Right click on each of them and select End Task to end these entries.
Resetting Microsoft Edge browser (Method 2):
If Method 1 failed to help you, you need to use an advanced Edge reset method.
- Note: you need to backup your data before using this method.
- Find this folder on your computer:
C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe. -
Select every entry which is saved on it and right click with your mouse. Then Delete option.
- Click the Start button (Windows logo) and type in window power in Search my stuff line.
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Right-click the Windows PowerShell entry and choose Run as administrator.
- Once Administrator: Windows PowerShell window shows up, paste this command line after PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> and press Enter:
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register $($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml -Verbose}
Once these steps are finished, 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam should be removed from your Microsoft Edge browser.
WindowsMac OS XInternet ExplorerMicrosoft EdgeFirefoxGoogle ChromeSafariErase 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam from Mozilla Firefox (FF)
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Remove dangerous extensions
Open Mozilla Firefox, click on the menu icon (top right corner) and select Add-ons → Extensions. -
Here, select 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam and other questionable plugins. Click Remove to delete these entries.
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Reset Mozilla Firefox
Click on the Firefox menu on the top left and click on the question mark. Here, choose Troubleshooting Information. -
Now you will see Reset Firefox to its default state message with Reset Firefox button. Click this button for several times and complete 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam removal.
Uninstall 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam from Google Chrome
To fix Chrome and get rid of annoying popups from this web browser, we highly recommend resetting it:
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Delete malicious plugins
Open Google Chrome, click on the menu icon (top right corner) and select Tools → Extensions. -
Here, select 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam and other malicious plugins and select trash icon to delete these entries.
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Click on menu icon again and choose Settings → Manage Search engines under the Search section.
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When in Search Engines..., remove malicious search sites. You should leave only Google or your preferred domain name.
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Reset Google Chrome
Click on menu icon on the top right of your Google Chrome and select Settings. -
Scroll down to the end of the page and click on Reset browser settings.
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Click Reset to confirm this action and complete 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam removal.
Remove 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam from Safari
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Remove dangerous extensions
Open Safari web browser and click on Safari in menu at the top left of the screen. Once you do this, select Preferences. -
Here, select Extensions and look for 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam or other suspicious entries. Click on the Uninstall button to get rid each of them.
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Reset Safari
Open Safari browser and click on Safari in menu section at the top left of the screen. Here, select Reset Safari.... -
Now you will see a detailed dialog window filled with reset options. All of those options are usually checked, but you can specify which of them you want to reset. Click the Reset button to complete 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam removal process.
About the author
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References
- ^ Beware of scam surveys and fake free offers. ACCC - Australian Competition & Consumer Commission.
- ^ What is a BHO (Browser Helper Object)?. Lifewire - Tech Untangled.