Pdfconvertsearch.com is a questionable search engine that you shouldn’t use

Pdfconvertsearch.com is a browser hijacker[1] that adds this URL to homepage and default search engine settings in all user’s web browsers. As a consequence, the victim will experience continuous redirects to hxxp://Pdfconvertsearch.com/ which might convince one to use the search engine provided on it. Research shows that French PC users suffer from this hijacker the most[2].
Sadly, instead of using it, victims should remove Pdfconvertsearch.com virus as soon as possible. Despite being semi-dangerous, it should not stay on computer systems because it creates a perfect environment to accidentally enter highly untrustworthy sites[3]. With the search results it provides, you are going to receive a lot of ads that link to external sites of unknown reputation.
The primary purpose of infecting computer systems with this hijacker is to force computer users to change the search engine they use on a daily basis, receive paid links in search results, and consequently enter affiliate websites. Each successful redirect to these external sites earns money for the developer of this vague search tool – Hopebest Inc. Media.
It is known to be a developer of similar potentially unwanted programs (PUP) that promote combinepdfsearch.com, convertpdfsearch.com or videoconvertsearch.com.
Another big disadvantage related to the usage of this search engine is that your activities online will be monitored the entire time the hijacker stays on the computer. For example, the hijacker might collect:
- Search queries;
- Browsing history;
- Clicks on ads;
- Downloads;
- IP Address;
- Type of hardware and operating system you use.
Using collected data, the developer of this hijacker tracks victim’s interests and then others interest-based advertisements to display. As we already mentioned, you must know that some of these ads can be used as bait to lure the victim into untrustworthy websites. Therefore, an immediate Pdfconvertsearch.com removal is required. You might want to use instructions we provide or automatic spyware removal software such as FortectIntego.

Distribution of virtual browser-affecting threats
If you want to keep your browser safe and avoid infecting it with browser-hijacking programs, you should know what software bundling is. It is a tricky distribution technique used by developers of free software.
If you have never done this, pay close attention to installation settings provided to you in software installers. You should notice that there are two general options to choose from – “Default/Standard” and “Custom/Advanced” one. You should choose the second option because it provides you a possibility to reject unwanted programs suggested to you.
Usually, Default and Standard software installation option is selected by default, but it doesn’t mean that you should rely on it. Typically, it contains statements giving software developers permission to install additional apps on your PC and earn the pay-per-install type of revenue. Unfortunately, these extra programs often turn out to be useless and annoying.
Remove Pdfconvertsearch.com redirect virus
Do not waste your time and remove Pdfconvertsearch.com virus to browse the Internet safely again. You may want to use automatic spyware removal software for it. If you are not interested in obtaining professional system maintenance programs, you can try to uninstall the hijacker on your own. Luckily, we have prepared instructions that will ease this task for you.
We strongly recommend you to concentrate on this task and delay all other tasks during Pdfconvertsearch.com removal. You need to be careful when deleting the hijacker from the system – you do not want to leave any of its remains here. Carefully check Programs and Features folder, then delete associated browser extensions. You might also need to reverse suspicious modifications made to your browser shortcuts.
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.

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