How to remove Pesquisa.ninja hijack

What is Pesquisa.ninja?

Pesquisa.ninja is a Portuguese search site, so obviously the biggest number of hijacked computers has been registered in Portugal. Nevertheless, the chances for other users to catch this annoying browser's infection are quite big as well as it typically spread bundled with various freewares and sharewares. In other words, if you encounter with a freeware that has been involved in Pesquisa.ninja plug-in's distribution, you may find your web browser affected as well. Due to such distribution tactics, this search provider has been categorized as a potentially unwanted program (PUP) and included into anti-spyware tools' database.

Although technically this plug-in is not a virus, it has several negative traits due to which you should not even consider using it. First of all, it tends to infiltrate computers without requiring authorization or at least not in a proper way. Moreover, one installed it may start initiating unauthorized modifications of all web browsers (Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc.), i.e. usually it replaces default start page, search provider, and a new yab window. Consequently, your web browser's performance may diminish and you may even start experiencing freezes. In addition, Pesquisa.ninja installs cookies and starts spying on its users daily with an intention to gather as much information about his/her browsing habits as possible. Browsing-related information typically includes search terms, websites visited, data typed while visiting them, clicks, IP address, PC's location, email address, and so on. Such data is not considered as personal; nevertheless, disclosed to suspicious third parties it may still be used for wrong purposes like, for instance, misleading advertising or email spamming. Last but not least, it's very important to warn you about Pesquisa.ninja redirects. Once this hijacker takes over your web browsers, it may start presenting you with corrupted search results that may contain sponsored links and ads. Unfortunately, research has shown that the chances to click on the links that Pesquisa.ninja redirect virus provides and expose your computer to reliable and dangerous websites are the same. Therefore, do not let this hijacker open the gates to other computer infections and get rid of it from the system right away. For that, try using Fortect Intego.

Pesquisa.ninja hijack

How can Pesquisa.ninja hijack my computer?

Pesquisa.ninja is distributed using unfair distribution techniques, the most common of which is known as ' bundling'. This method is suspicious enough to make people install third-party add-ons, plug-ins, toolbars, and extensions without even realizing that. How? 'Bundling' simply means that ad-supported add-ons, plug-ins, toolbars, and extensions are attached to other free programs and disguised under Advanced/Custom installation options and disclosed in a very tricky manner in order to stay unnoticed. Thus, if the user selects Quick/Basic installation and does not pay much attention to the freeware's installation, 'optional downloads' are installed by default. In order to prevent that, you just have to select Advanced or Custom installation mode, focus on the process, detect 'optional downloads' and deselect each of them.

How to remove Pesquisa.ninja virus?s

Pesquisa.ninja hijack is not a big deal to worry about. To prevent all risk that it may pose, including redirects to unsafe websites and data loss, you just have to remove it. If that's exactly what you seek to do, then follow these steps:

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