FunCyberTab ads: what it is and how to remove it
If you visit file sharing websites frequently, one day you might install FunCyberTab browser hijacker on your computer. It is a potentially unwanted program (PUP), which spreads via freeware and shareware.
Facts checked October 7, 2026. Removal steps tested on Windows 11 (26H2) and checked against Microsoft's and the browser makers' current documentation. Sections marked as our earlier report are the original text: they describe the threat as it was then and have not been reviewed since. The 2026 status, the removal steps and the questions are current.
Automatic
Get a free scan and check if your PC is infected.
Fortect finds malware, unwanted programs and the Windows damage they leave behind, and repairs it in one pass.
Clicked a notification from search.funcybertabsearch.com and installed something? A free scan checks programs and browsers in one pass.
Do it yourself · free Remove FunCyberTab ads yourself 2 steps, about 6 minutes, no software needed.

FunCyberTab ads: summary
| Detection names | No Microsoft detection name is known |
|---|---|
| Distribution | Not recorded in the old report |
| Damage | Not recorded in the old report |
| Name | FunCyberTab ads |
| Type | Push-notification spam site |
| Symptoms | Notification spam from a website |
| Removal | Scan the PC with security software to find and remove the malware and anything installed with it. Fortect scans Windows for malware and repairs the system files and settings it damaged. Remove it nowTo use the full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Fortect. The scan is free. |
Show 7 more facts
| Evidence | One write-up by a security site; details still limited |
|---|---|
| Domains | search.funcybertabsearch.com |
| Ads shown as | Desktop notifications |
| Browsers | Chrome, Edge and Firefox |
| Installed on the PC | Nothing; a browser notification permission only |
| First seen | 22 June 2016 |
| Facts checked | 7 October 2026 |
Is FunCyberTab ads dangerous?
From our report of Jun 2016 · not reviewed since
Should you be afraid of FunCyberTab virus?
If you visit file sharing websites frequently, one day you might install FunCyberTab browser hijacker on your computer.
It is a potentially unwanted program (PUP), which spreads via freeware and shareware. It has an official website, which presents this PUP as a tool that can add security tools to your browser, provide shortcuts to top security sites and also fast links to other popular Internet pages.
However, it is unlikely that this PUP can help to increase your computer security at any point. The real aim of it is to take control over user's web browsers and set search.funcybertabsearch.com site as a new tab and home page and default search provider.
You should not rely on this search engine as it reportedly causes redirects to third-party websites, which means that you will not be able to access relevant information so quickly. In other words, you can experience a URL redirection after clicking on a search result.
These FunCyberTab redirects are associated with affiliate links, and such unpleasant behavior of this search engine is meant to generate advertising revenue for the developers of this PUP. Another phenomenon you might encounter is called ads by FunCyberTab.
They can appear during your browsing sessions, inserted into your search results, and show up in various other forms on your screen. Of course, these ads can also cause FunCyberTab redirect issue, so it is better to ignore them.
Take into account that you cannot just go to your browser's settings and change the homepage, new tab page and search engine settings, as this PUP will revert them back. Hence, you have to implement FunCyberTab removal first. If you do not want to do that, you can use instructions provided below this post and delete this hijacker manually.

From our report of Jun 2016 · not reviewed since
Who installed this PUP on your PC?
This potentially undesirable application is not a serious computer virus, and it does not act like a serious Trojan or another severe computer threat, which means it cannot get inside your computer in an illegal way. However, it uses a tricky technique and bundles itself with other free programs.
If you would like to keep it away from your PC, install programs attentively. Some computer programs recommend installing a few third-party programs alongside them, but you always have a choice to opt them out. You can do that by picking Advanced or Custom settings and deselecting all optional components.
Sadly, this program and similar browser hijackers can be downloaded from trustworthy sources like Chrome Web Store. In most cases, it is impossible to find them via search, but you can access it via the official website of this PUP.
In other words, we assume that this app can be accessed via Chrome Web Store only by those who have a direct link to it. We advise you to read user's feedback before you install any suspicious browser extensions or apps to your PC.
Check your browser and PC
- Address:
search.funcybertabsearch.com
How to remove FunCyberTab ads
How to stop FunCyberTab ads notifications
Do this in every browser you use, and in every profile inside it: each keeps its own list of sites allowed to send notifications.
Nothing has to be uninstalled for the notifications themselves.
Which browser shows the ads?
Step 1: Remove search.funcybertabsearch.com from Chrome's notification list
Open More (the three dots) > Settings > Privacy and security > Site settings > Notifications, or paste
chrome://settings/content/notificationsinto the address bar.Under Allowed to send notifications, open the menu next to
search.funcybertabsearch.comand choose Remove or Block, and do the same for any other address you do not recognise.Next to Not allowed to send notifications, click Add and enter search.funcybertabsearch.com, so the site cannot ask again. The menus are the same in Chrome on Windows 11 and Windows 10, and each Chrome profile keeps its own list.

Chrome on Windows 11: Settings > Privacy and security > Site settings > Notifications. Full procedure with screenshots: Stop website notifications and pop-ups
Instructions for Google Chrome
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.

Step 1: Remove search.funcybertabsearch.com from Edge's notification list
Edge stores its own permission list, separate from Chrome's, and it is often the browser behind these pop-ups on Windows 11 and Windows 10.
Go to Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Site permissions > All permissions > Notifications, or paste
edge://settings/content/notifications. Removesearch.funcybertabsearch.comfrom Allowed, then add it under Not allowed to send notifications. Notifications that show the Edge logo come from this list.
Edge on Windows 11: Site permissions > All permissions > Notifications. Full procedure with screenshots: Stop website notifications and pop-ups
Instructions for Microsoft Edge
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.

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.

Step 1: Remove search.funcybertabsearch.com from Firefox's notification permissions
In Firefox the permission sits in Settings > Permissions and data > Notifications (in older versions Privacy & Security > Notifications > Settings). Select
search.funcybertabsearch.comin the list, click Remove Website, and confirm with Save Changes.Firefox only shows these notifications while it is open, so if they stopped after closing Firefox, this is the browser to clean. The steps are the same on Windows 11 and Windows 10.

Firefox on Windows 11: the Notification Permissions window. Full procedure with screenshots: Stop website notifications and pop-ups
Instructions for Mozilla Firefox
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.

Our tested steps are for Windows 11 and 10. For Safari (Mac), use the instructions below.
Instructions for Safari (Mac)
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.

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.
Then, whichever browser you use
Step 2: Scan the PC if you downloaded anything from the ads
Most people who only saw the notifications can skip this step. If a notification or the page it opened made you download or run a file, delete the file and run a full scan, then a Microsoft Defender Offline scan.
In Windows 11 and Windows 10 open Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options, select Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan) and click Scan now. The PC restarts and the scan takes about 15 minutes, so save your work first.

Windows 11: Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options. Full procedure with screenshots: Run a Microsoft Defender Offline scan
More removal instructions
For programs installed on the PC and older browsers. Open the one you need.
Two different ways to remove FunCyberTab ads
You can get rid of ads and stop web redirects easily - all you need to do is to remove FunCyberTab virus by following instructions that we have prepared.
If you can still see ads or if your computer runs slow after removing this PUP from it, then we strongly advise you to clean up your computer using an automatic spyware/malware removal software as it is likely that your PC has become home not to one, but two or more critical programs.
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.

Do not let government spy on you
The government has many issues in regards to tracking users' data and spying on citizens, so you should take this into consideration and learn more about shady information gathering practices.
Avoid any unwanted government tracking or spying by going totally anonymous on the internet.
You can choose a different location when you go online and access any material you want without particular content restrictions. You can easily enjoy internet connection without any risks of being hacked by using VPN.
Control the information that can be accessed by government any other unwanted party and surf online without being spied on. Even if you are not involved in illegal activities or trust your selection of services, platforms, be suspicious for your own security and take precautionary measures by using the VPN service.
Backup files for the later use, in case of the malware attack
Computer users can suffer from data losses due to cyber infections or their own faulty doings.
Ransomware can encrypt and hold files hostage, while unforeseen power cuts might cause a loss of important documents. If you have proper up-to-date backups, you can easily recover after such an incident and get back to work. It is also equally important to update backups on a regular basis so that the newest information remains intact - you can set this process to be performed automatically.
When you have the previous version of every important document or project you can avoid frustration and breakdowns. It comes in handy when malware strikes out of nowhere. Use for the data restoration process.
Questions about FunCyberTab ads
search.funcybertabsearch.com keeps sending notifications. Is it a virus?
No. Notifications from search.funcybertabsearch.com come from a permission stored in the browser, not from a program installed in Windows. Someone clicked Allow on a prompt from that site, usually without realising what it meant, and the site now sends ads through the browser's notification system.
Antivirus scans often find nothing because there is nothing to find on the disk. Removing search.funcybertabsearch.com from the browser's list of allowed sites stops the messages for good. A scan is still useful if you clicked a notification and downloaded or ran something from the page it opened, because those downloads can be unwanted programs.
I clicked a notification from search.funcybertabsearch.com. What should I do?
If you only opened the page and closed it, nothing else is needed besides removing the permission from search.funcybertabsearch.com. If the page asked for card details, a phone number or a password and you entered them, act on that: call the bank to block the card, or change the password from another device.
If it offered a download, delete the file unopened, or uninstall it from Installed apps if you ran it, then run a full scan. If you called a number shown on the page, follow the steps for callers in this guide. Finally, remove the permission so that no more messages arrive.
What is FunCyberTab ads?
FunCyberTab ads is a push-notification spam site, a kind of adware. It earns money by showing desktop notifications, and each view, click or redirect pays whoever runs it. It is not something people usually choose; it arrives through a free download, a fake button or a misleading prompt.
FunCyberTab ads does not encrypt files or take control of Windows, but its ads are sold to anyone, including scam operators, so they can lead to fake virus warnings and unwanted downloads. The steps in this guide remove it from Windows and from each browser.
Why does search.funcybertabsearch.com keep showing up?
There are two possible reasons. If it appears as desktop notifications, a browser on this PC was given permission to receive them from search.funcybertabsearch.com, usually through a misleading prompt. That permission stays until you remove it in the browser's site settings.
If it appears as tabs or redirects, an ad on a site you visit is opening it, or an extension or program on the PC is. Test a private window: if search.funcybertabsearch.com never appears there, an extension is the likely cause. The plan above covers each case.
Do I have to change settings in every browser?
Only in the browsers that allowed search.funcybertabsearch.com, but checking all of them takes a minute and is worth it. We saw the notifications in Chrome, Edge and Firefox. Chrome and Edge keep their notification lists under site settings, and Firefox under Privacy & Security > Permissions.
Remove search.funcybertabsearch.com and any other unfamiliar site from each list, then turn off new notification requests if you do not need them. Remember that every browser profile has its own list, so a second profile can keep the messages coming after you clean the first.
Are the pop-ups I see really from FunCyberTab ads?
Compare them with the details in the table above. FunCyberTab ads produces desktop notifications, and the clearest sign of it is notifications from search.funcybertabsearch.com. Other adware looks similar, so check the name of the sending site at the bottom of a notification, the address in the tab that opened, or the newest entries on the extensions page.
If those match, this guide fits. If you see a different name, the same kind of steps apply, but remove the item you actually find rather than guessing.
Is it safe to click Block or Allow on a notification prompt?
Clicking Block is safe; it only tells the browser not to show notifications from that site. Clicking Allow is not dangerous to your files either, but it gives the site a channel to your desktop that spam sites abuse at once.
The prompt itself is part of the browser, so you can trust its buttons. What you cannot trust is the text on the page around it. If a page explains why you must click Allow, choose Block or close the tab.
Can I turn off the pop-ups in Windows settings instead?
You can hide them, but that is not the fix. In Windows 11, Settings > System > Notifications lets you switch off notifications for a whole browser, which silences the spam together with every useful notification from that browser.
The site keeps its permission and can still send messages when you switch them back on. It is better to remove the specific site in the browser's own notification settings and block new requests. That stops the messages at the source and leaves the rest of your notifications working.
I let a "support technician" from an ad connect to my PC. What should I do?
Act quickly but calmly. Disconnect the PC from the internet first, so the connection ends. Uninstall the remote access tool they asked you to install and check Installed apps for anything else added during the call.
Run a Microsoft Defender full scan and offline scan. From another device, change your e-mail and banking passwords and sign out of all sessions.
If you paid by card, bank transfer or gift card, contact your bank or the card issuer immediately, and report the scam to the police. Do not answer if they call back.
Will Fortect remove FunCyberTab ads?
No program removes FunCyberTab ads itself, because there is nothing on the PC to remove: the notifications come through a permission saved in the browser, and only the browser's settings take it away, as the steps above show.
What Fortect can do is check the rest of Windows. Its free scan looks for malware, unwanted programs and damaged system files, which is useful if you clicked the ads, downloaded something from the pages they opened, or are not sure what else changed on the PC.
If the scan finds nothing and the notifications stopped after you removed the permission, this problem is solved. Use Microsoft Defender as a second opinion whenever you have downloaded files from pages like these.
Sources
- Google Chrome Help: Use notifications to get alerts (no longer online) (read October 7, 2026)
- FTC: How to recognize, remove and avoid malware (read October 7, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Defender Offline (read October 7, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: How Microsoft names malware (read October 7, 2026)