Remove PBot adware (Virus Removal Guide)

Pbot adware – malware which is capable of causing serious damage if not removed on time

PBot adware-type virus

PBot adware, also called PythonBot, is an ad-supported program^[1] which is written in Phyton. Posing a danger to its victims in several ways, this virus cannot be called a traditional PUP that can be removed by resetting your web browser. Once inside the computer, the virus displays hundreds of ads which are mostly based on Javascript. Also, it causes redirects to dubious pages and is trying to infect web browsers with other malicious extensions. The Pbot virus can also travel together with a miner which is launched to generate cryptocurrency right after the system is infected.

Name	PBot
Alternatively known as	PythonBot
Type	Adware
Distribution	Bundled software, misleading ads, online game sites, and other familiar ones
Codes used	JavaScript
Affected operating systems	Windows
Affected countries	Russian-speaking countries, such as Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, etc.
ACTIVITY On the system	Produces numerous ads, redirects to malicious domains, infects the system with other malware and miners, can lock down the PC, and even important data making it unusable
Elimination	To delete this harmful program from the system, use Fortect Intego

PythonBot is designed to infect Windows operating system only. It is already detected by Kaspersky, Dr. Web, Sophos, Symantec, Avast, Avira and many other anti-virus vendors.^[2] It regularly changes its location to keep spreading around and make the removal process more complicated. Its distribution relies on .hta file which additionally downloads NSIS installer and saves it on %AppData% location.

When installed, malware causes numerous changes in the system, including injecting malicious DLLs into web browsers and installing ad extensions without user's notice. According to tech experts,^[3] this adware-type program can also be added to the Trojan category because of its ability to travel together with cryptocurrency miners and similar malware.^[4]

After setting the PC according to its preferences, Pbot might cause such damage:

The loss of important data;
Serious system malfunction because of crypto mining;
Continuous pop-up ads and redirects while browsing the Internet;
Making the system vulnerable to other threats;
Leading its victims to money loss or even identity theft.

Information tracking is also implemented by PythonBot, which typically collects users' search terms, mostly visited domain names, computer's IP address, its location and similar data.

If you have even the slightest thought that you could be infected with this threat, we strongly recommend performing PBot removal on your computer. Keep in mind that you are dealing with the serious malware, so you should use special tools for its full elimination from the system, such as Fortect Intego. The longer it will remain on your system, the bigger the damage can be. Your Windows operating system can become unusable if you do not take care of the threat.

To remove PBot adware, you can also use your anti-virus software after updating it to its latest version. While you can reset your web browsers affected by this adware, this procedure won't help you to get rid of the threat fully. These files, known to be related to this malware, should also be removed:

lauchall.py
brplugin.py
ml.py
app.py

PBot harmful program

Adware-type programs can spread in numerous ways

Harmful programs, including adware-type threats and other PUPs, can easily spread with the help of fake ads and other sources. Main distribution ways are:

Bundled software;
Dubious sites and links;
Spam messages;
False updates;
Peer-to-peer networks;
Online game sites;
Misleading ads;
And many more.

If you want to keep your computer system safe from this and other adware-related infections, you need to avoid harmful content at all costs. First of all, what you have to do is eliminate all suspicious looking sites from your browsing routine as they might be filled with fake websites and similar content.

To continue, avoid spam and questionable emails – better send an inquiry about the message to make sure that the sender is real and has nothing to do with cybercriminals. Such emails often include malicious content which, once opened, drops malware onto the system.

You should also be careful with online game sites or P2P networks. Install an antivirus to prevent unwanted infiltration of malware from these sites. And finally, keep yourself focused while browsing the web as there are lots of dangers hiding in various sites and waiting for somebody to enter them.

To delete PBot adware, use the help of an antivirus software

To remove PBot virus, you will have to download and install an anti-malware tool. Otherwise, there is no chance to find all malicious components belonging to this threat. You can choose any of programs recommended below to fix your computer system and prevent slowdowns caused by miners.

Professional help is required as the Pbot removal cannot be done manually. As mentioned before, this cyber threat transfers itself from one location to another just to prevent its elimination.

After you have finished this procedure, we strongly recommend refreshing your computer system and even browsers. Malicious content can still be hiding and waiting for its chance to recover.

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.

How to remove PBot adware

Pbot adware – malware which is capable of causing serious damage if not removed on time

Adware-type programs can spread in numerous ways