ALOT toolbar – a fake search engine you should uninstall from your browser

ALOT Toolbar should be categorized as a potentially unwanted program and a browser hijacker. That's because it may infiltrate your computer in a bundle with other applications and then may hijack each of your web browsers, including:
- Internet Explorer,
- Google Chrome,
- Mozilla Firefox, and other web browsers.
If you have been convinced that we are saying that this program is a virus, then you should stop doing that because we haven't found any possibility that it could be related to malicious activity. However, it may cause some issues while it is installed on the system.
No matter how ALOT Toolbar enters the computer, with or without your knowledge, you should be careful when using it for your browsing. The reason why are we are saying that is very simple – it may show you altered search results that may try to trick you into visiting unknown, unsafe, and suspicious websites that are trying to increase their page rank or sales.
Experts who analyzed the threat said:
You may need to start dealing with various commercial ads and pop-up messages that may try to interrupt each of your browsing sessions. Please, try to be very careful with them because you can never know what programs or websites they promote.
If you want to avoid ALOT Toolbar redirects to websites with nothing to do with your real search results, you should look for another search tool on the Internet. Besides, beware that, like many other browser hijackers, this program may start tracking your browsing on the web.
In most cases, such programs collect personally non-identifiable information, which means that ALOT Toolbar may start collecting your search terms, mostly visited websites, data that you enter when visiting these websites, etc. We think that you should keep this data for yourself.
In order to remove ALOT Toolbar from the system, you should waste no time and scan your computer with SpyHunterCombo Cleaner or another reputable anti-malware, followed up by a scan with FortectIntego for best results.
Unexpected arrival of PUPs can be explained by software bundling
The most common way to download this program to the system is the manual installation method. There are lots of websites that have been involved in its distribution. However, that's not the only method that is used for spreading it. Beware that this program may also appear on your computer after installing another program.
Mostly, ALOT Toolbar may appear on your machine after installing such free programs as:
- download managers,
- PDF creators,
- fake system optimizers,
- video streaming software, etc.
That's why you should start monitoring the installation of such applications. For that, you don't have to be a computer expert. You just need to select Custom or Advanced settings when downloading freeware to the system.
After that, you should deselect pre-checked check marks that allow ALOT toolbar's installation and such changes as the changes if the homepage or a default search engine. In most cases, this toolbar promotes ask.com.
Uninstall ALOT Toolbar at once
If you want to avoid various potentially unwanted programs, you should start monitoring the installation of the freeware. If you see changes to your web browser (for example, there is a suspicious bar attached at the top or your homepage is not what it used to be), you should immediately take action and remove ALOT toolbar along with other PUPs that might be installed on your system without permission.
While ALOT toolbar removal might be possible when using security software (it is important to note that not all anti-malware tools detect all potentially unwanted applications, as different criteria are used, depending on the vendor), cleaning web browsers manually is highly recommended. Removing web data and cookies, for example, would ensure that the hijacker is no longer able to track you.
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.

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1 comment
CreepingShadow
In order to rid myself of the annoying ALOT toolbar I inadvertently installed, I had to do several things:
1. Uninstall ALOT (Control Panel > Programs & Features -- choose ALOT and click uninstall)
2. Change homepage back (Firefox Menu > Options > Options OR File > Tools > Options -- General tab)
3. Remove from Firefox Addons (Firefox Menu > Add-ons OR Tools > Add-ons -- highlight ALOT, click the trash can on the far right)
4. Remove it from Search box next to the address bar at the top of the browser:
- Click the down arrow next to the icon in the search box
- Click Manage Search Engines
- In the Manage Search Engine List box, highlight ALOT and click Remove.