HD Quality – ad-delivery program that tracks your browsing habits
HD Quality is a browser add-on that works as a video converter from YouTube or other streaming websites. Developed by Airwaves Moves Inc., it claims to be able to enhance the quality of online videos to their highest resolution. While this indeed may sound effective and useful, you should not be deceived.
The truth is that the main goal of the app is to deliver various pop-ups, in-text links, auto-play, and other types of advertisements on Google Chrome or another used browser. Besides, it is not usually installed on purpose due to deceptive distribution tactics it uses. Due to mentioned traits, HD Quality is considered to be adware.
| Name | HD Quality |
| Type | Adware |
| Distribution methods | Software bundle packages, third-party websites |
| Operation | The app is presented as video enhancement tool, although its main purpose is to deliver intrusive advertisements each time a user browses the web |
| Elimination | Follow the instructions below or scan your computer with antivirus software |
| System fix | Adware or malware can cause damage to Windows system files, resulting in crashes or errors. If you notice these symptoms after PUP elimination, use FortectIntego to fix virus damage automatically |
Besides its promised features, it may also implement a long list of additional operations that strongly disrupt people's browsing activities. According to the latest reports, it may start diminishing your browser's performance and may cause constant crashes.
Moreover, it may start displaying various advertisements that are typically marked with the following:
- Ads by HD Quality;
- Powered by HD Quality;
- Delivered by HD Quality.
These ads may appear in various forms, which can negatively impact web browsing time. Usually, they appear on screen all of a sudden, trying to occur straight on your path. If you click on them accidentally, you may be redirected to a suspicious-looking website that promotes predetermined goods or services.
However, some of these websites may be dangerous because HD Quality allows third parties of unknown origin to promote themselves in exchange for money. Therefore, you have to be very careful and avoid clicking on links if you want to keep your computer safe.
Moreover, you should know that this browser plug-in may start tracking your browsing activities, including what sites you visit, links you click, or what search queries you use. Once the required data is collected, it may be shared with third parties.
If you need an app that would be useful and actually enhance your video-viewing quality, do not pick adware for that. Instead, rely on user reviews and forum posts to determine which programs are trustworthy.
Adware distribution is mainly conducted via bundling
In most cases, this browser add-on is mainly distributed in a bundle with download managers, video, audio or PDF converters, Music streamers, and so on. If you are not sure how a potentially unwanted app managed to gain access to your PC, you should check which free software you have recently installed.
To avoid being a victim of software bundling, you should be more careful when downloading and installing new programs. Avoid visiting unfamiliar websites and clicking on commercial advertisements. However, the most important thing is to pay close attention to is what buttons you press or don't press during the installation process.
Clicking the 'Next' or 'I agree' buttons will surely end up installing unwanted software. Instead of that, opt for Advanced or Custom installation if possible as they should disclose all additional programs that may be added to the desired one.
Removal options for potentially unwanted programs
HD Quality redirects and ads may harm your computer security or even pose a risk to your personal safety. As already mentioned, you should find apps that do not track your data constantly or show you ads non-stop. Therefore, it is recommended to remove this adware as soon as you start noticing its ads.
You can either follow the guidelines for manual elimination or employ antimalware software that could find and delete all the components at once. Besides, it would check whether invisible malware is running in the background without you knowing about it.
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.
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