Search Awesome virus (Removal Instructions) - Aug 2018 update
Search Awesome virus Removal Guide
What is Search Awesome virus?
Search Awesome – an adware type virus which fills users' searches with dubious links and unwanted ads
Search Awesome is an adware-type program developed by searchawesome.net. The virus claims that it is capable of helping users get more friends and other awesome stuff. However, no matter how good its official site looks, security experts have already warned users not to install this PUP on the system because it can easily change your system settings and perform other unwanted activities behind your back. Also known as Adware.SearchAwesome, unreliable program can also stealthily install browser helper objects (BHO) and similar components to track your search sessions, so there is no doubt that it should be avoided.
| Name | Search Awesome |
|---|---|
| Type | Adware |
| Detected as | Adware.SearchAwesome |
| Danger level | High |
| Distribution methods | Bundling technique; untrustworthy websites; fake ads |
| Symptoms | Altered search results, numerous ads and links, disrupted browser's activity |
| Potential dangers | Delivered ads might be programmed to automatically install malware or redirect to shady pages |
| Elimination | FortectIntego is recommended to uninstall Search Awesome |
The functionality of Search Awesome malware is almost identical to Social2Search and Wajam[1]. The suspicious software asks access to victim’s social media accounts so that it could generate modified search results for the victim. People are tricked to use it by the false promises of the developers:
We are committed to enhance your web searches to help you find what you are looking for.
The tool suggests providing useful search results that reveal what the victim’s friends have shared regarding the user’s search query. Although such a feature seems useful, do not let this adware program deceive you and uninstall Search Awesome for your safety. The entire time it stays on your computer, it analyzes yours, as user’s, activity online.
First of all, it tracks what search terms do you use, what websites you decide to visit, which ads draw your attention and convince you to click on them, and similar data. Based on such pieces of information, the adware chooses what ads to display. Part of the ads might be displayed as search results, while the remaining ones can emerge as:
- banners;
- pop-ups;
- in-text ads.
It is unlikely that SearchAwesome can enhance your search experience in any way. Vice versa, we are positive that it will worsen it. If you do not want to receive a combination of ads and friends’ posts in your regular search results, remove Search Awesome virus right now. To delete it, you will need to use the instructions we provided or FortectIntego software.
Another reason to complete Search Awesome removal as soon as it is possible is the fact that it indirectly poses a threat to your computer system. To put it simply, with this potentially unwanted program on your system, the chance to accidentally visit malicious or phishing websites increases. Therefore, it is better to get rid of it and use a regular search engine instead.
If that is not enough, keep in mind that this adware might secretly infiltrate other potentially unwanted programs (PUPs) that will complicate the elimination or make it even impossible. Thus, it is crucial to get rid of SearchAwesome as quickly as possible before it starts installing suspicious software.
Software-bundles usually contain the adware
The easiest way to distribute potentially unwanted programs is to place them in a hidden location for the users not to notice. Likewise, developers have employed bundling[2] technique which allows them to infiltrate the adware among the optional components and spread as one software with freeware.
Once they bundle a couple of programs together, one or more of them become hardly noticeable. The installer of such software pack looks like it's designed to install one individual program.
In reality, Custom/Advanced installation settings hide some terms that you need to disagree with. Choose these settings over Default/Standard ones to access the list of extra programs and drop them off. Remember – if you rely on pre-selected software installation options, you give the software developer permission to clutter your system with possibly dangerous programs.
Therefore, avoid such pre-selected options as:
- I agree to install XXX;
- Get XXX now;
- I agree to change my new tab URL, homepage and default search engine to XXX.
The checkmarks which have been selected against your will may also bring questionable web browser tools, or system optimization software. They are also categorized as potentially unwanted programs that might deteriorate your computer's performance.
We have noticed that software bundling allows spyware to infect computers all over the world, mostly France[3], Poland, US, China, and hundreds of other countries. Likewise, we advise you to stay cautious and get an antivirus to protect your PC at all times.
Search Awesome elimination will help you enjoy browsing again
If you want to make your browsing experience pleasant again, remove Search Awesome virus immediately! For that, you are welcome to use our elimination instructions presented just below. You can get rid of the adware from the Control Panel.
If you have never attempted to perform such spyware removal by yourself, try Search Awesome removal software provided below. Choose the one that suits your needs and let it clean your system automatically.
You may remove virus damage with a help of FortectIntego. SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner and Malwarebytes are recommended to detect potentially unwanted programs and viruses with all their files and registry entries that are related to them.
Getting rid of Search Awesome virus. Follow these steps
Uninstall from Windows
Uninstall SearchAwesome, Wajam or Social2Search. Find programs that look suspicious to you and uninstall them via Control Panel. In case you can't find any shady-looking programs or if you have already uninstalled them, proceed to the next step – clean your browsers from unwanted browser extensions.
Instructions for Windows 10/8 machines:
- Enter Control Panel into Windows search box and hit Enter or click on the search result.
- Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.
- From the list, find the entry of the suspicious program.
- Right-click on the application and select Uninstall.
- If User Account Control shows up, click Yes.
- Wait till uninstallation process is complete and click OK.
If you are Windows 7/XP user, proceed with the following instructions:
- Click on Windows Start > Control Panel located on the right pane (if you are Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
- In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.
- Pick the unwanted application by clicking on it once.
- At the top, click Uninstall/Change.
- In the confirmation prompt, pick Yes.
- Click OK once the removal process is finished.
Delete from macOS
Remove items from Applications folder:
- From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
- In the Applications folder, look for all related entries.
- Click on the app and drag it to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash)
To fully remove an unwanted app, you need to access Application Support, LaunchAgents, and LaunchDaemons folders and delete relevant files:
- Select Go > Go to Folder.
- Enter /Library/Application Support and click Go or press Enter.
- In the Application Support folder, look for any dubious entries and then delete them.
- Now enter /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders the same way and terminate all the related .plist files.
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 on Uninstall at the bottom.
Clear cookies and other browser data:
- Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Privacy & security.
- Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
- Select everything (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 Disable if you found any suspicious domain.
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.
If this solution failed to help you, you need to use an advanced Edge reset method. Note that you need to backup your data before proceeding.
- Find the following folder on your computer: C:\\Users\\%username%\\AppData\\Local\\Packages\\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe.
- Press Ctrl + A on your keyboard to select all folders.
- Right-click on them and pick Delete
- Now right-click on the Start button and pick Windows PowerShell (Admin).
- When the new window opens, copy and paste the following command, and then press Enter:
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\\AppXManifest.xml” -Verbose
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.
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 unwanted plugin and click Remove.
Reset the homepage:
- Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
- Choose Options.
- Under Home options, enter your preferred site that will open every time you newly open the Mozilla Firefox.
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, as well as Cached Web Content and press 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 Search Awesome extension from Chrome. if you can find more suspicious extensions, consider them removing all at once.
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 the suspicious plugins that might be 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 unwanted extensions from Safari:
- Click Safari > Preferences…
- In the new window, pick Extensions.
- Select the unwanted extension and select Uninstall.
Clear cookies and other website data from Safari:
- Click Safari > Clear History…
- From the drop-down menu under Clear, pick all history.
- Confirm with Clear History.
Reset Safari if the above-mentioned steps did not help you:
- Click Safari > Preferences…
- Go to Advanced tab.
- Tick the Show Develop menu in menu bar.
- From the menu bar, click Develop, and then select Empty Caches.
After uninstalling this potentially unwanted program (PUP) and fixing each of your web browsers, we recommend you to scan your PC system with a reputable anti-spyware. This will help you to get rid of Search Awesome registry traces and will also identify related parasites or possible malware infections on your computer. For that you can use our top-rated malware remover: FortectIntego, SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes.
How to prevent from getting adware
Access your website securely from any location
When you work on the domain, site, blog, or different project that requires constant management, content creation, or coding, you may need to connect to the server and content management service more often. The best solution for creating a tighter network could be a dedicated/fixed IP address.
If you make your IP address static and set to your device, you can connect to the CMS from any location and do not create any additional issues for the server or network manager that needs to monitor connections and activities. VPN software providers like Private Internet Access can help you with such settings and offer the option to control the online reputation and manage projects easily from any part of the world.
Recover files after data-affecting malware attacks
While much of the data can be accidentally deleted due to various reasons, malware is one of the main culprits that can cause loss of pictures, documents, videos, and other important files. More serious malware infections lead to significant data loss when your documents, system files, and images get encrypted. In particular, ransomware is is a type of malware that focuses on such functions, so your files become useless without an ability to access them.
Even though there is little to no possibility to recover after file-locking threats, some applications have features for data recovery in the system. In some cases, Data Recovery Pro can also help to recover at least some portion of your data after data-locking virus infection or general cyber infection.
If this free guide helped you and you are satisfied with our service, please consider making a donation to keep this service alive. Even a smallest amount will be appreciated.
- ^ David Bisson. Malvertising campaign used Wajam browser extension to infect PCs. Graham Cluley. Latest Computer Security News, Opinion and Advice.
- ^ Liam Tung. Google: Unwanted bundled software is way more aggressive than malware. ZDNet. Technology News, Analysis, Comments and Product Reviews.
- ^ LesVirus. LesVirus. Malware Removal Guides, Cyber Security Tips.