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GoogleFix.exe (Improved Instructions) - Removal Guide

by Ugnius Kiguolis - www - | Type: Browser hijacker

GoogleFix.exe Removal Guide

What is GoogleFix.exe?

GoogleFix.exe – malware that adds dubious entries which disable proper browsing

GoogleFix.exe virusGoogleFix.exe is a computer virus which provides pop-ups that force the web browser to crash.

GoogleFix.exe is a virus which modifies specific system settings and hardens the browsing process for its victims. This malicious program manages to install an application called “Amazon AMS”. Even though this type of program is completely legal, cybercriminals find ways how to misuse it. Additionally, the provider of this application is Amazon, and it is not a Windows computer component. GoogleFix.exe virus might sneak into the system unnoticed and start its activity by making changes to the Microsoft Windows “hosts” files and by adding questionable entries. As a result of this activity, users are not capable of browsing normally and face the consequences of other unwanted activities this malware program causes.

Name GoogleFix.exe
Category Browser-hijacking app
Sub-category Malware
Related app Amazon AMS
Changes performed Modification of Windows “hosts” file, adding dubious entries, disabling normal browsing
Possible dangers Can relate in identity theft or unwanted financial losses
Elimination Use reliable software for the elimination. Find all malware-related content with FortectIntego

When GoogleFix.exe malware infects the computer system and starts performing its rogue activities, users start overcoming dubious-looking pop-ups in their web browser, while using Google-provided services such as the search engine. These rogue notifications force the browser to crash which makes the browsing activity almost impossible to maintain.

It is known that these misleading pop-ups link users to this IP address: 91.205.174.26/GoogleFix.exe. However, GoogleFix.exe performs more unwanted activities such as data collection. This cyber threat is capable of gathering information which relates to the user's browsing and computing activities. Collected details turn out to be:

  • visited pages;
  • IP addresses;
  • screenshots;
  • geolocations;[1]
  • pictures and videos viewed.

According to computer researchers, these type of viruses can lead to even more dangerous consequences such as personal data theft, unnecessary money losses, and others. If you have been infected with this malware, you should remove GoogleFix.exe virus as soon as possible. Use anti-malware tools for the process and do not forget to clean your web browsers.

GoogleFix.exe malware also has the ability to redirect. Once infected with this computer virus, there is a big chance that you will start experiencing dubious redirects to questionable-looking pages. Note that, you might overcome a malware-laden website where you can easily get your computer system infected with other dangerous malware, e.g. ransomware.[2] Additionally, we suggest downloading a tool such as FortectIntego to detect all malware-laden components in the infected system.

The GoogleFix.exe removal requires more effort than usual potentially unwanted programs. First, you will need to open all infected web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, or Explorer, and eliminate all rogue extensions from them. After that, you should fully recover the Windows “hosts” file. Microsoft has released some instructions for this purpose.

GoogleFix.exe malwareGoogleFix.exe is malware which creates dubious entries and disables proper browsing.

Distribution techniques of malicious software

According to cybersecurity researchers,[3] malware-related applications often pretend to be legitimate applications which allow them to easily sneak into the targeted system. However, there is a big risk that you will get infected with malware if you often visit third-party websites such as P2P networks[4] or other secondary downloading/installing sources.

Moreover, other programs can come together with regular software. There is a term for this kind of marketing technique, it is known as “bundling”. To avoid secret installation, use original downloaders only. Furthermore, it is a great idea to track your downloads, you can do so by choosing the Custom or Advanced installation option in your web browser.

Additionally, you can take care of your computer system and web browsers by using automatical computer security tools. There is a big variety of programs to choose from but be careful not to pick a fake one. After the installation, such software will protect your computer from various possible infections and bombard alerts if any threats are found after the scan.

Get rid of GoogleFix.exe malware from your Windows system and refresh web browsers

If the malicious program has shown up on your Windows computer system, you need to eliminate the program as soon as possible. For the GoogleFix.exe removal, use only reputable anti-malware tools as manual deletion is not a good option for this case. You might skip some malicious content which will renew the virus-related activity.

Remove GoogleFix.exe virus from the system and all web browsers infected. Make sure you check each web browser to search for any malware traces. This includes Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, and Safari. After the process is completed, refresh both and the system, and the web browser just to make sure that the virus is gone.

You may remove virus damage with a help of FortectIntego. SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner and Malwarebytes are recommended to detect potentially unwanted programs and viruses with all their files and registry entries that are related to them.

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If you failed to fix virus damage using Fortect Intego, submit a question to our support team and provide as much details as possible.
Fortect Intego has a free limited scanner. Fortect Intego offers more through scan when you purchase its full version. When free scanner detects issues, you can fix them using free manual repairs or you can decide to purchase the full version in order to fix them automatically.
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Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Fortect, try running SpyHunter 5.
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Alternative Software
Different software has a different purpose. If you didn’t succeed in fixing corrupted files with Intego, try running Combo Cleaner.
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Getting rid of GoogleFix.exe. Follow these steps

Uninstall from Windows

If you have overcome the GoogleFix.exe malware on your Windows computer system, you can remove it by performing these guidelines:

Instructions for Windows 10/8  machines:

  1. Enter Control Panel into Windows search box and hit Enter or click on the search result.
  2. Under Programs, select Uninstall a program. Uninstall from Windows 1
  3. From the list, find the entry of the suspicious program.
  4. Right-click on the application and select Uninstall.
  5. If User Account Control shows up, click Yes.
  6. Wait till uninstallation process is complete and click OK. Uninstall from Windows 2

If you are Windows 7/XP user, proceed with the following instructions:

  1. Click on Windows Start > Control Panel located on the right pane (if you are Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
  2. In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program. Uninstall from Windows 7/XP
  3. Pick the unwanted application by clicking on it once.
  4. At the top, click Uninstall/Change.
  5. In the confirmation prompt, pick Yes.
  6. Click OK once the removal process is finished.

Remove from Microsoft Edge

Delete unwanted extensions from MS Edge:

  1. Select Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and pick Extensions.
  2. From the list, pick the extension and click on the Gear icon.
  3. Click on Uninstall at the bottom. Remove extensions from Edge

Clear cookies and other browser data:

  1. Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Privacy & security.
  2. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
  3. Select everything (apart from passwords, although you might want to include Media licenses as well, if applicable) and click on Clear. Clear Edge browsing data

Restore new tab and homepage settings:

  1. Click the menu icon and choose Settings.
  2. Then find On startup section.
  3. Click Disable if you found any suspicious domain.

Reset MS Edge if the above steps did not work:

  1. Press on Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
  2. Click on More details arrow at the bottom of the window.
  3. Select Details tab.
  4. 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. Reset MS Edge

If this solution failed to help you, you need to use an advanced Edge reset method. Note that you need to backup your data before proceeding.

  1. Find the following folder on your computer: C:\\Users\\%username%\\AppData\\Local\\Packages\\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe.
  2. Press Ctrl + A on your keyboard to select all folders.
  3. Right-click on them and pick Delete Advanced MS Edge reset 1
  4. Now right-click on the Start button and pick Windows PowerShell (Admin).
  5. When the new window opens, copy and paste the following command, and then press Enter:

    Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\\AppXManifest.xml” -Verbose Advanced MS Edge reset 2

Instructions for Chromium-based Edge

Delete extensions from MS Edge (Chromium):

  1. Open Edge and click select Settings > Extensions.
  2. Delete unwanted extensions by clicking Remove. Remove extensions from Chromium Edge

Clear cache and site data:

  1. Click on Menu and go to Settings.
  2. Select Privacy, search and services.
  3. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
  4. Under Time range, pick All time.
  5. Select Clear now. Clear browser data from Chroum Edge

Reset Chromium-based MS Edge:

  1. Click on Menu and select Settings.
  2. On the left side, pick Reset settings.
  3. Select Restore settings to their default values.
  4. Confirm with Reset. Reset Chromium Edge

Remove from Mozilla Firefox (FF)

If your Mozilla Firefox browser has been modified by the malicious program, you can reverse all unwanted changes by looking thru these instructions:

Remove dangerous extensions:

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click on the Menu (three horizontal lines at the top-right of the window).
  2. Select Add-ons.
  3. In here, select unwanted plugin and click Remove. Remove extensions from Firefox

Reset the homepage:

  1. Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
  2. Choose Options.
  3. Under Home options, enter your preferred site that will open every time you newly open the Mozilla Firefox.

Clear cookies and site data:

  1. Click Menu and pick Settings.
  2. Go to Privacy & Security section.
  3. Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
  4. Click on Clear Data…
  5. Select Cookies and Site Data, as well as Cached Web Content and press Clear. Clear cookies and site data from Firefox

Reset Mozilla Firefox

If clearing the browser as explained above did not help, reset Mozilla Firefox:

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click the Menu.
  2. Go to Help and then choose Troubleshooting Information. Reset Firefox 1
  3. Under Give Firefox a tune up section, click on Refresh Firefox…
  4. Once the pop-up shows up, confirm the action by pressing on Refresh Firefox. Reset Firefox 2

Remove from Google Chrome

Google Chrome might be hijacked by malware. If so, you can reverse all changes and delete unwanted content by providing these steps:

Delete malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

  1. Open Google Chrome, click on the Menu (three vertical dots at the top-right corner) and select More tools > Extensions.
  2. In the newly opened window, you will see all the installed extensions. Uninstall all the suspicious plugins that might be related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove. Remove extensions from Chrome

Clear cache and web data from Chrome:

  1. Click on Menu and pick Settings.
  2. Under Privacy and security, select Clear browsing data.
  3. Select Browsing history, Cookies and other site data, as well as Cached images and files.
  4. Click Clear data. Clear cache and web data from Chrome

Change your homepage:

  1. Click menu and choose Settings.
  2. Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
  3. 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:

  1. Click on Menu and select Settings.
  2. In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
  3. Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
  4. Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
  5. Confirm with Reset settings. Reset Chrome 2

Delete from Safari

Remove unwanted extensions from Safari:

  1. Click Safari > Preferences…
  2. In the new window, pick Extensions.
  3. Select the unwanted extension and select Uninstall. Remove extensions from Safari

Clear cookies and other website data from Safari:

  1. Click Safari > Clear History…
  2. From the drop-down menu under Clear, pick all history.
  3. Confirm with Clear History. Clear cookies and website data from Safari

Reset Safari if the above-mentioned steps did not help you:

  1. Click Safari > Preferences…
  2. Go to Advanced tab.
  3. Tick the Show Develop menu in menu bar.
  4. From the menu bar, click Develop, and then select Empty Caches. Reset Safari

After uninstalling this potentially unwanted program (PUP) and fixing each of your web browsers, we recommend you to scan your PC system with a reputable anti-spyware. This will help you to get rid of GoogleFix.exe registry traces and will also identify related parasites or possible malware infections on your computer. For that you can use our top-rated malware remover: FortectIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes.

How to prevent from getting browser hijacker

Stream videos without limitations, no matter where you are

There are multiple parties that could find out almost anything about you by checking your online activity. While this is highly unlikely, advertisers and tech companies are constantly tracking you online. The first step to privacy should be a secure browser that focuses on tracker reduction to a minimum.

Even if you employ a secure browser, you will not be able to access websites that are restricted due to local government laws or other reasons. In other words, you may not be able to stream Disney+ or US-based Netflix in some countries. To bypass these restrictions, you can employ a powerful Private Internet Access VPN, which provides dedicated servers for torrenting and streaming, not slowing you down in the process.

Data backups are important – recover your lost files

Ransomware is one of the biggest threats to personal data. Once it is executed on a machine, it launches a sophisticated encryption algorithm that locks all your files, although it does not destroy them. The most common misconception is that anti-malware software can return files to their previous states. This is not true, however, and data remains locked after the malicious payload is deleted.

While regular data backups are the only secure method to recover your files after a ransomware attack, tools such as Data Recovery Pro can also be effective and restore at least some of your lost data.

About the author
Ugnius Kiguolis
Ugnius Kiguolis - The mastermind

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