News Searcher Pro browser hijacker: how to remove it from your browser
News Searcher Pro is a Chrome extension that changes your default search and sends each search through obsrchrdr.com before a real search engine answers. Remove the extension, set your own search engine and clear the cookies it left.
Facts checked October 6, 2026. Removal steps tested on Windows 11 (26H2) and checked against Microsoft's and the browser makers' current documentation.
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News Searcher Pro: summary
| Type | Browser hijacker (default search and start page); potentially unwanted program, not a virus |
|---|---|
| Risk | Medium: searches go through another site and carry a long-lived identifier; the privacy policy allows collecting search words and browsing history |
| Symptoms | Searches from the address bar pass through obsrchrdr.com; the default search engine is not the one you chose; an extension called News Searcher Pro |
| How to get rid of it | Remove the extension, set your own search engine and start page, clear the site cookies, uninstall programs added the same day, then scan |
| Our check (6 October 2026) | No notification request, no pop-ups, no service worker on one visit; a search was passed with one redirect to Google |
| Running since | Domain registered 3 February 2025; our first report 9 May 2025 |
| 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 12 more facts
| Installed on the PC | Nothing from the websites themselves. Only what you add: the Chrome extension, or a program that sets the search engine |
|---|---|
| Detection | No Microsoft detection name is known: the websites install nothing by themselves |
| Damage | No harm to files; changes the search engine and possibly the home page and new tab; searches and clicks may be recorded by others |
| Distribution | Its own page and the Chrome Web Store listing; software bundles and ads according to our 2025 report, not confirmed today |
| Evidence | Our test, the page code, the extension's Web Store listing and own page, the privacy policy, the registry records, our 2025 report |
| Name | News Searcher Pro |
| Search page | obsrchrdr.com |
| Domain registered | 3 February 2025 |
| Extension | News Searcher Pro |
| Browsers | Chrome, Edge and Firefox |
| First seen | 9 May 2025 |
| Facts checked | 6 October 2026 |
Facts checked on 6 October 2026 against our own test of obsrchrdr.com and newsearcherpro.com in desktop Chromium from Europe, their page code, the Chrome Web Store listing, the privacy policy and the domain registry records. Not tested:
- the extension itself
- Edge
- Firefox and Safari
- any installer or ad
What News Searcher Pro is and what it does to a browser
News Searcher Pro is a Chrome extension that makes obsrchrdr.com your search page. It is listed in the Chrome Web Store, and its own page says it changes your default search to Yahoo, so the question is less "is it hidden" than "did you mean to install it". Our May 2025 report said it also replaced the home page and new tab page; we did not test that part.
- What it is
- A Chrome extension described as a news shortcut: type
a-,n-orr-and a search term to look in ABC News, The New York Times or Reuters. Its own page adds that it sets the default search to Yahoo - Where it is listed
- Chrome Web Store, item
gadfkpbjhlleamgiodolgecpcafalgcj. On 6 October 2026 it showed 9 users, no ratings, version 0.0.2, updated 30 September 2026 - Who is named
- The Web Store lists the developer as Codefuel Ltd, Leonardo da Vinci Street 2, Tel Aviv. The privacy policy on obsrchrdr.com is written by CodeFuel Ltd and gives the same address. We did not verify who controls the extension beyond what these pages say
- What it changes
- The default search engine, according to the extension's own page. Our 2025 report said the home page and new tab page too, all pointing to
obsrchrdr.com - Where it comes from
newsearcherpro.com(registered 19 February 2025) offers the extension;obsrchrdr.com(registered 3 February 2025 through GoDaddy Corporate Domains) is the search page it sends you to
Is News Searcher Pro dangerous? What it collects
Our test on 6 October 2026
We opened obsrchrdr.com and newsearcherpro.com as a visitor would (clean desktop Chromium, from Europe), read the page code and the privacy pages, and followed one search by hand. We did not install the extension.
obsrchrdr.com and newsearcherpro.com · desktop Chromium · Europe · 6 October 2026
- Notification requestNone on this one visit, on either site.
- Pop-ups and new tabsNone on this one visit.
- Redirects on loading the pageNone:
obsrchrdr.comstayed on its own address and showed a search box under a dark blue bar. - Service workerNone registered, so nothing from the page keeps running in the browser after you leave.
- Where a search goesA search sent to
obsrchrdr.com/results.aspxwas answered with a 302 redirect straight towww.google.com/search, carrying only the search words. One hop in our try. The extension's page says Yahoo, so the destination is not fixed. Google then showed its own unusual-traffic check to our automated browser, so we saw no results page. - CookiesThe redirect set three cookies on
obsrchrdr.com(UserId,UI2andUserData) that last until 3 October 2036.UserIdandUI2held the same identifier. - Pages behind the footer linksThe About and Terms of Use pages still contained unfilled template markers such as
[[WEBSITE_NAME]]and[[COMPANY]]. The privacy policy page is complete. - Other domainsThe page loads files from
se-p-static-content.seccint.comandstorage2.stgbssint.com, and its code asks Bing andautocompleteplus.comfor suggestions as you type. We could not identify the first two. - The extension's own page
newsearcherpro.comsays in plain words that clicking Add to Chrome sets the default search to Yahoo and links to the Web Store item. It loaded one analytics file fromwebinline-usage.streamesh.net.
Medium risk The pages were quiet on this one visit: no notifications, pop-ups or ads, and a search was passed straight on to Google. The cost is elsewhere: a search you did not choose, a long-lived identifier on every search and a privacy policy that allows collecting search words and browsing history. One visit, one country, one browser: sites like this can act differently by country, device, delay or a second visit, so "nothing seen" clears nothing. We did not test the extension itself.
What our 2025 report showed, and what changed
February 2025
Both domains registered within three weeks
obsrchrdr.comwas registered on 3 February 2025 andnewsearcherpro.comon 19 February 2025, according to the registry records.May 2025
Our first report: a search box that replaced the start page
We described it as a browser extension that took over the home page, new tab page and default search and sent searches to
obsrchrdr.com.
obsrchrdr.com in the Chrome browser, as shown in our May 2025 report: the empty search box, the Search button and the privacy notice. The page looks the same in our October 2026 screenshot. May 2025
The privacy policy was already the place to read
The report pointed at the policy on
info.obsrchrdr.com. Its table of online identifiers lists IP address, device ID, device type and carrier, and says that during installation the service will also know of other software on the device.
The privacy policy at info.obsrchrdr.com in our 2025 report, scrolled to the table of Online Identifiers. The woman in the picture is a stock image. 4 December 2025
The policy was updated
The policy we read in October 2026 is dated 4 December 2025 and names CodeFuel Ltd as its author.
30 September 2026
The extension was updated again
The Web Store shows version 0.0.2 with that update date, six days before our test.
6 October 2026
Same page, a direct hop to Google
The search page is unchanged. A search now went with one redirect to Google. That is one result: the destination can change by visit or by country.
What can go wrong
This is a search hijacker, not a virus: it does not touch your files. The concerns are privacy first, then the results you are shown.
- Medium
Your searches are collected
The privacy policy on
obsrchrdr.comsays it collects search queries, the time and date of each one, search terms and browsing history, plus IP address and device identifiers. It lists Microsoft, Yandex and Yahoo as search partners it shares data with. The Web Store listing says the developer will not collect or use your data, so the two statements do not match. - Medium
A ten-year identifier travels with every search
The cookies we saw last until 3 October 2036 and carry one identifier. They stay in the browser after the extension is removed until you clear them.
- Low
Results are chosen by someone else
Search hijackers earn from searches they pass on. We saw a plain redirect to Google and no ads on this one visit, so we cannot say how this one is paid.
- Low
It may not be alone
If an installer or an ad put it there, it may have added other extensions or programs. Those, not News Searcher Pro, may be the harder part to clean.
- Low
No file damage and no known detection
We found no detection name for
obsrchrdr.comand nothing in our test installs a program on the PC.
What the sites in the chain can see
- Your search words
- Your IP address
- Browser and device details
- Language setting
- Time of each search
- Which sites you visited (according to the privacy policy)
- The identifier in the cookie
The last two are what the policy says it may collect; we did not test how much of it happens.
How News Searcher Pro got into your browser
Most people who find it cannot say when they added it. Check the routes below in this order, the first is the quickest to see.
| Route | What you would see | How to check |
|---|---|---|
| The extension's own page or its Web Store listing | You clicked Add to Chrome on a page about finding news; search, and possibly the home page and new tab, changed at once | chrome://extensions: an item called News Searcher Pro |
| Free software or a download page with a pre-ticked offer | An extension or program you do not remember appeared the day the search changed | Settings > Apps > Installed apps, sorted by install date |
| Ads and fake alerts that push you to "add" something | You clicked an ad or a warning, then found a new extension | The browser's history for the day it began; the extensions list |
| Another default-search extension of the same kind | Removing one leaves the search still changed | The Web Store lists several similar "news" and "search" extensions on this listing's page; check every one you did not choose |
- 1
You type a search in the address bar
With the extension active, the default search engine is
obsrchrdr.com, not the one you used before. - 2
The words go to obsrchrdr.com
The browser asks
obsrchrdr.com/results.aspxfor the results, so your search words sit in the web address. - 3
The site marks your browser and passes you on
It sets its identifier cookies and answers with a redirect to a search provider: Google in our try, Yahoo according to the extension's page.
- 4
A results page opens
It looks like an ordinary search, which is why many people live with it. The detour is the part you did not choose.
How to remove News Searcher Pro
How to remove News Searcher Pro and get your search engine back
Remove the extension first.
The search settings only stay fixed once nothing on the PC can change them again.
Which browser shows the ads?
Set another search engine
Open Settings > Search engine, click Change next to the search engine used in the address bar and pick the one you want. Then open Manage search engines and site search and delete any entry named
obsrchrdr.comor one you did not add.Find and remove News Searcher Pro
Paste
chrome://extensionsinto the address bar, switch on Developer mode and look for News Searcher Pro; its ID isgadfkpbjhlleamgiodolgecpcafalgcj. Click Remove and confirm. Then remove anything else you did not install yourself, especially items added the day the search changed.Full procedure with screenshots: Remove a browser extension
Check the start page and new tab
Open Settings > On startup and Appearance > Show home button, and delete
obsrchrdr.comif it is listed as a page to open. Our 2025 report said the home page and new tab were changed too.Clear the site data
Press Ctrl + Shift + Delete, choose All time, tick Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files, and click Delete data. This removes the identifier cookies that
obsrchrdr.comset; you do not need to clear your history.Reset Chrome
Open Settings > Reset settings > Restore settings to their original defaults and confirm with Reset settings. This resets the start page, search engine and pinned tabs and turns off extensions; bookmarks and saved passwords stay.
Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Know what you are looking for
The extension's listing is for Chrome. Microsoft Edge can also run Chrome Web Store extensions, so if the extensions page shows News Searcher Pro, remove it. We found no separate Edge, Firefox or Safari version.
Set another search engine
Open Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Address bar and search and choose the search engine used in the address bar. Check Manage search engines for entries you did not add.
Remove extensions you do not recognise
Paste
edge://extensionsinto the address bar and click Remove under anything you did not install yourself.Full procedure with screenshots: Remove a browser extension
Clear the site data
Open Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Delete browsing data > Choose what to clear, set All time, tick Cookies and other site data and Cached images and files, and click Clear now.
Reset Edge
Open Settings > Reset settings > Restore settings to their default values and confirm with Reset. Extensions are turned off and the start page goes back to default; favourites, history and saved passwords stay.
Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Set another search engine
Open Settings > Search and pick another engine under Default Search Engine. Under Search Shortcuts, remove any entry you did not add.
Remove add-ons you do not recognise
Paste
about:addonsinto the address bar, open Extensions, and choose Remove from the three-dot menu of anything you did not install yourself.Full procedure with screenshots: Remove a browser extension
Clear cookies and site data
Open Settings > Privacy & Security > Cookies and Site Data > Clear Data, tick both boxes and click Clear.
Refresh Firefox
Open the menu > Help > More troubleshooting information and click Refresh Firefox. Add-ons and custom settings are removed and the home page goes back to default; bookmarks, history and passwords stay.
Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Set another search engine
Open Safari > Settings > Search and choose a different Search engine. Then check Settings > Extensions for anything you do not recognise and click Uninstall.
Remove extensions you do not recognise
In Safari > Settings > Extensions, select anything you did not install yourself and click Uninstall. Move any program you did not install on purpose from Finder > Applications to the Bin.
Clear the site data
In Safari > Settings > Privacy > Manage Website Data, remove the site's data, or use History > Clear History > all history. To empty the cache as well, turn on Show features for web developers in Settings > Advanced and choose Develop > Empty Caches.
Check the Mac for apps from the ads
Search hijackers can arrive on a Mac with fake players, "cleaners" and other free downloads. In Finder > Applications, move anything unknown to the Bin. In System Settings > General > Login Items & Extensions, remove unknown items. Then use Go > Go to Folder to check
/Library/LaunchAgents,~/Library/LaunchAgents,/Library/LaunchDaemonsand/Library/Application Supportfor folders and files with the same unknown names, and empty the Bin.
Then, whichever browser you use
Step 1: Uninstall programs you did not mean to install
Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps in Windows 11, or Settings > Apps > Apps & features in Windows 10, and sort the list by install date. Look at what appeared around the day the problem started and uninstall every program you do not recognise or did not choose.
Free converters, PDF and video tools, "system optimizers" and unknown browsers are the usual carriers of News Searcher Pro. If a name is unclear, search for it before you remove it, so you do not uninstall a driver or a Windows component.
Full procedure with screenshots: Uninstall a program or app in Windows On uGetFix
Step 2: Scan the PC, then run the offline scan
Open Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options, run a Full scan and remove everything it finds. Then select Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan) and click Scan now: the PC restarts and scans before Windows loads, which finds files that hide while Windows runs.
Save your work first, because the offline scan takes about 15 minutes. Both scans are built into Windows 11 and Windows 10, and a second scanner from another vendor is a useful extra opinion.
Windows 11: Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Scan options. Full procedure with screenshots: Run a Microsoft Defender Offline scan
After removal: keep your search engine and start page
If it came with a program or an ad
Removing the extension is enough if the search settings and an extension are all that changed. If you installed something or clicked an ad just before it started, take three more steps.
- 1
Uninstall what arrived with it
Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps in Windows 11 (Apps & features in Windows 10), sort by install date and uninstall anything added on the day the search changed. Click Yes if User Account Control asks (Uninstall a program or app in Windows On uGetFix).
- 2
Scan, then scan offline
Run a Microsoft Defender Full scan. Then run Microsoft Defender Antivirus (offline scan), which can find programs that hide while Windows is running.
- 3
Check the browser again after a restart
Restart, open the search engine and start-up settings, and search once. If
obsrchrdr.comis back, another extension or program is putting it there; the install-date list is where to look. Check again a day later.
How to keep it from happening again
Do
- Read the small print under any Add to Chrome button: if it says it will change your default search, that is the whole purpose of the extension.
- Choose Custom or Advanced in installers and untick extra programs, extensions and search settings.
- Download programs from their makers' sites or the Microsoft Store, not from download portals or file-sharing networks.
- After installing any free software, open the browser's search engine settings once and check them.
- Keep Microsoft Defender on, and Chrome's Enhanced protection or Edge's SmartScreen.
- Keep a current backup of your files (File History or OneDrive), so a failed disk or an infection does not cost you your documents.
- A VPN hides your IP address from the sites you visit on public networks; it does not remove hijackers.
Don't
- Add an extension because an ad or a warning says you need it.
- Click through Quick or Recommended setup without reading it.
- Accept "make this your default search" prompts from programs you did not go to install.
- Click ads that offer a free "cleaner", "player" or news tool.
Questions about News Searcher Pro
What is News Searcher Pro?
News Searcher Pro is a Chrome extension that makes obsrchrdr.com your search page. It is listed in the Chrome Web Store under the developer name Codefuel Ltd and describes itself as a news shortcut:
- type a-
- n- or r- and a term to search ABC News
- The New York Times
- Reuters
Its own page also says it changes the default search to Yahoo, which is the part people complain about. Our May 2025 report said it replaced the home page and new tab page as well. We saw its search page redirect straight to Google on 6 October 2026, so the destination is not fixed.
Is News Searcher Pro a virus?
No, it is an unwanted search hijacker, not a virus. In our test on 6 October 2026 obsrchrdr.com and newsearcherpro.com asked for no notifications, opened no pop-ups, registered no service worker and installed nothing. That was one visit, so it proves little about other countries or later visits.
The reasons to remove it are the search you did not choose, cookies that last until 2036 and a privacy policy that allows collecting search words and browsing history. If you added it on purpose and are happy, nothing breaks, but most readers did not.
What is obsrchrdr.com?
obsrchrdr.com is the search page that News Searcher Pro sets as your default search. It is a plain page with one search box; a search sent to it is answered with a redirect to a real search provider, Google in our test.
The domain was registered on 3 February 2025 through GoDaddy Corporate Domains, and its privacy policy is written by CodeFuel Ltd of Tel Aviv. The page sets three cookies with an identifier that last until 3 October 2036. It is not a search engine of its own, only a stop on the way to one.
How do I remove News Searcher Pro from Chrome?
Open chrome://extensions, switch on Developer mode, find News Searcher Pro (ID gadfkpbjhlleamgiodolgecpcafalgcj) and click Remove. Then open Settings > Search engine, choose the engine you want and delete obsrchrdr.com under Manage search engines and site search. Check Settings > On startup for obsrchrdr.com too.
Clear cookies and cached files for All time to remove the identifiers it set, and restart Chrome. If the search changes back, another extension or a program is setting it; look at Settings > Apps > Installed apps for anything added the same day.
Why does my search go to obsrchrdr.com or Yahoo?
Your default search engine was replaced, almost always by an extension. News Searcher Pro's own page says it changes the Chrome default search to Yahoo, and it routes searches through obsrchrdr.com first. A search for weather sent to that address was passed to Google in our test, so the final engine can differ.
Open Settings > Search engine in Chrome and see which engine is set. Then open chrome://extensions and look for News Searcher Pro or any extension you did not choose. Removing the extension and resetting the search engine stops the detour.
Does News Searcher Pro work in Edge, Firefox or Safari?
We found a listing only for Chrome. Microsoft Edge can run extensions from the Chrome Web Store, so it may be present there if you added it. We found no Firefox or Safari version, and our May 2025 report included steps for those browsers because people reported the same start page.
If obsrchrdr.com is your search page in Firefox or Safari, something else set it, such as a program installed in Windows or an extension with a different name. The More section for each browser above gives the steps for search, extensions and site data.
Who is behind News Searcher Pro?
The Chrome Web Store lists the developer as Codefuel Ltd, Leonardo da Vinci Street 2, 24th Floor, Tel Aviv. The privacy policy on obsrchrdr.com is written by CodeFuel Ltd and gives the same street address; it describes CodeFuel as a company that supplies search results to partners and lists Microsoft, Yandex and Yahoo as its search partners.
We could not confirm more than these pages say. The Web Store page for the extension also shows a list of similar default-search extensions, which we did not trace to any developer.
What does News Searcher Pro collect about me?
The privacy policy on obsrchrdr.com lists search queries, the time and date of each search, search terms and browsing history, IP address, device ID and device type. It also says that during installation the service will know of other software on the device.
The Chrome Web Store listing says the developer will not collect or use your data, so the two statements disagree. We did not install the extension, so we cannot say how much of this happens. Remove it if you did not choose it, and clear the site cookies it set.
Will removing it delete my bookmarks or passwords?
No. Removing an extension takes out only that extension and its data; bookmarks, history, saved passwords and your other extensions stay. Clearing cookies and cached files signs you out of some sites, so keep your passwords to hand.
A browser reset is stronger: it turns off all extensions and resets the start page and search engine, but also keeps bookmarks and saved passwords. Start with the extension and the search engine setting, and use the reset only if the search keeps changing back.
Will Fortect remove News Searcher Pro?
Fortect scans Windows for malware and unwanted programs and repairs the system files and settings they change, and its free scan shows what it finds on your PC before you decide anything.
For News Searcher Pro, follow the plan above as well: the browser steps take back permissions and settings that no scanner treats as a threat, and uninstalling the program that brought it removes the source.
Run Microsoft Defender's full scan and, if anything was found, its offline scan as a second opinion. If the symptoms are gone after the plan and both scans are clean, there is nothing more to do.
Sources
- Our own test of obsrchrdr.com and newsearcherpro.com: desktop Chromium from Europe, page code and one search followed by hand (read October 6, 2026)
- newsearcherpro.com: the extension's own page (read October 6, 2026)
- Chrome Web Store: News Searcher Pro (read October 6, 2026)
- obsrchrdr.com: Privacy Policy (CodeFuel Ltd, last modified 4 December 2025) (read October 6, 2026)
- obsrchrdr.com: About Us and Contact pages (read October 6, 2026)
- Domain registration record (RDAP) for obsrchrdr.com (read October 6, 2026)
- Domain registration record (RDAP) for newsearcherpro.com (read October 6, 2026)
- Google Chrome Help: Change your default search engine (no longer online) (read October 6, 2026)
- Microsoft Support: Change your default search engine in Microsoft Edge (read October 6, 2026)
- Mozilla Support: Change your default search settings in Firefox (read October 6, 2026)
- Apple Support: Change your search settings in Safari on Mac (read October 6, 2026)