Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools: what it is and how to remove it
Search.emailsearchtools.com is considered to be a potentially unwanted program (PUP) that installs the Email Search Tools extension into web browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Explorer, and others to modify their default search engines, homepages, and new tab URL bars. The browser hijacker aims to convince about its useful functionality by providing fast access to Gmail accounts.
Facts checked October 6, 2026. Removal steps tested on Windows 11 (26H2) and checked against Microsoft's and the browser makers' current documentation. Sections marked as our earlier report are the original text: they describe the threat as it was then and have not been reviewed since. The 2026 status, the removal steps and the questions are current.
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Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools: summary
| Name | Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools |
|---|---|
| Type | Potentially unwanted program |
| Sub-type | Browser hijacker |
| Target(s) | This suspicious app targets web browsers such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, and Safari |
| Changes | The browser-hijacking application sets the default search engine, homepage, and new tab URL to search.emailsearchtools.com |
| Feature | The application provides fast access to the Gmail email service to prove its handy functionality. According to research, it does not support any other types of emails |
| 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 10 more facts
| Activities | Besides modifying major web browser settings, the browser hijacker also can start providing intrusive advertisements, redirecting the user to sponsored locations, collecting browsing-related information |
|---|---|
| Detection names | No Microsoft detection name is known |
| Distribution | Not recorded in the old report |
| Damage | Not recorded in the old report |
| Symptoms | A changed search engine |
| Evidence | 4 write-ups by security sites; details still limited |
| Search page | search.emailsearchtools.com |
| Browsers | Chrome, Edge and Firefox |
| First seen | 25 February 2020 |
| Facts checked | 6 October 2026 |
What Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools changes in your browser
We cannot guarantee and you should not expect, that your information will remain secure at all times and in all circumstances, though we do use commercially reasonable efforts to secure your information.
Is Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools dangerous? What it collects
From our report of Feb 2020 · not reviewed since
Search.emailsearchtools.com - a browser hijacker that allows reaching your Gmail account faster but takes over your web browser in exchange
Search.emailsearchtools.com is considered to be a potentially unwanted program (PUP) that installs the Email Search Tools extension into web browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, Explorer, and others to modify their default search engines, homepages, and new tab URL bars.
The browser hijacker aims to convince about its useful functionality by providing fast access to Gmail accounts. According to research, this app does not support any other types of emails, so its feature is not that handy as it might have appeared from the first view.
Email Search Tools turns the default search provider to search.emailsearchtools.com that serves from the 34.194.245.177 IP address and generates search results from a legitimate engine known as Yahoo. Instead of experiencing unwanted modifications and having a hard time to reverse these settings back, you can just use Yahoo as your default engine and avoid all the potentially unwanted activities that can be brought by the browser hijacker.
Search.emailsearchtools.com does not provide any advantages that would be useful for the user. Easy email access is already a thing in Google, so it is nothing surprising. You can also choose whatever default search engine you want to use no matter it's Google, Bing or Yahoo. You do not need to get your web browser hijacked for that.
Furthermore, the changes that are performed by the so called Search.emailsearchtools.com virus on your major web browser settings cannot be reversed unless you get rid of the browser hijacker together with all the rogue products it has brought to the computer system. Beware that you can find questionable components also in your Windows Task Manager and Registry sections.
Besides hijacking your web browsers and installing questionable extensions into these apps, Email Search Tools can also start loading you with suspicious advertisements with offers to purchase questionable products, subscribe to rogue deals, fill in some types of surveys or questionnaires, get you involved in various upcoming sales, and so on.
The longer you keep Search.emailsearchtools.com on your computer system and web browser, the worse the advertising might get. You can start experiencing pop-ups and pop-unders during every browsing session that might slightly decrease the quality of your surfing tasks. As a result, your web browser and computer might start crashing.
In addition, Email Search Tools might get you involved in redirecting sessions that are programmed to take the user to developer-sponsored websites. However, here you are at risk of landing on a malware-related directory and getting your computer system infected with a dangerous cyber threat such as a Trojan virus or ransomware.
Also, Search.emailsearchtools.com can start recording browsing-related information by installing tracking objects such as HTTP cookies, beacons, and pixels into your web browsers. This way the browser hijacker can collect data such as recently-visited websites, search query results, hyperlinks and ads accesses, saved bookmarks, your IP, and web browser type.
The information that is gathered by Search.emailsearchtools.com falls straight into the developers' hands and can be shared with other parties for income or get involved in targeted advertising schemes. However, if you provide your email address, mobile phone number, and payment data while using the services of this browser hijacker, this type of information can get recorded too.
However, here comes the risk that something might happen and the private data that was collected might get exposed in some or involved in a data breach. If you carefully read the Privacy Policy of Search.emailsearchtools.com, you will find the developers claiming that they cannot assure full safety of the gathered details in all times:
Search.emailsearchtools.com removal should help you to decrease the risk of landing on a malware-laden domain or getting your information exposed. For this task, go and employ a trustworthy antimalware tool that will help you to deal with the browser hijacker and eliminate all the questionable components that it has brought to your computer.
Also, you can remove Search.emailsearchtools.com with the help of manual step-by-step guidelines that have been added to the end of this article. If you are completing the elimination process by yourself, do not forget to clean web browsers for complete elimination too. Furthermore, if you discovered any altered areas on your computer, you can try repairing them with the help of software such as .
From our report of Feb 2020 · not reviewed since
Secret hiding places of PUPs such as browser hijackers
Virus specialists from Virusai.lt state that PUP developers use deceptive techniques such as bundling to distribute their products to random users' devices.
The browser hijacker comes as an additional component in an entire software package and gets downloaded to the computer system when the user has opted for the Quick or Recommended downloading settings. Instead of letting PUPs into your system, set the Advanced or Custom mode as default.
Furthermore, you should prevent yourself from downloading products from secondary domains such as download.com, cnet.com, softonic.com, soft32.com where they often come with additional content. You should get all of your services and software only from reliable developers and their original websites.
Also, browser hijackers can get delivered through unsecured websites that are filled with suspicious advertisements, hyperlinks, and similar content. Be aware not to click on every pop-up and link that you see while browsing the Internet sphere. Furthermore, download AdBlock to prevent all of the incoming adverts. Last but not least, purchase a reliable antivirus program that will warn you when something suspicious is waiting ahead.
From our report of Feb 2020 · not reviewed since
More from our earlier report on Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools
- If your computer has experienced some type of alterings, you can try to repair the affected areas with the help of software such as
Check your browser and PC
- Address:
search.emailsearchtools.com
How to remove Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools
How to remove Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools 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.
Step 1: Remove extensions you did not add
Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools often works through an extension, so go through the extension list of each browser:
chrome://extensionsedge://extensions- Extensions and themes in Firefox
Switch suspicious extensions off one at a time and reload the page where the problem shows, then remove the one that stops it, and any other you did not add.
Remember the other browsers and profiles on the PC. If Remove is missing or greyed out, a policy forces the extension, which the policy step deals with. Windows 11 and Windows 10 show the same pages.
Chrome on Windows 11: More > Extensions > Manage extensions. Full procedure with screenshots: Remove a browser extension
Step 2: Put the search engine back and delete search.emailsearchtools.com
Searches that pass through
search.emailsearchtools.commean the browser's default search engine was replaced. Chrome: Settings > Search engine > Manage search engines and site search, then Make default on Google, Bing or another engine you chose, and Delete on search.emailsearchtools.com.Edge has the same list under Manage search engines (search the Settings page for it), and Firefox under Settings > Search.
Look at On startup and the homepage settings too and remove the hijacker's address there. Nothing in this step differs between Windows 11 and Windows 10.
Chrome on Windows 11: check Search engine and On startup. Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Step 3: 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 Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools. 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 4: Reset the browser
Finish the browser part with a reset, which puts the search engine, start page, new tab page and site permissions back to their defaults and switches extensions off. Chrome: Settings > Reset settings > Restore settings to their original defaults.
Edge: Settings > Reset settings. Firefox: Help > More troubleshooting information > Refresh Firefox, which also removes its extensions. Your bookmarks and saved passwords are kept, and the menus are the same on Windows 11 and Windows 10.
Chrome on Windows 11: Settings > Reset settings. Full procedure with screenshots: Reset a browser and fix a hijacked search engine
Step 5: 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
Instructions for each browser and system
The detailed steps for every browser and system this guide covers. Open the one you use.
Uninstall from Windows
To terminate the browser hijacker and all the suspicious products that have entered your Windows computer system together with it, you should apply the following steps
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.
Remove from Google Chrome
To fully clean your Google Chrome web browser and eliminate all the bogus changes that were brought to it by the browser hijacker, you should try the following instructions
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.
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.
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)
To get rid of all the questionable extensions, plug-ins, and add-ons that were planted into Mozilla Firefox, you should try following the below-provided guidelines
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.
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.
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.
Stream videos without limitations, no matter where you are
There are multiple parties that could find out almost anything about you by checking your online activity.
While this is highly unlikely, advertisers and tech companies are constantly tracking you online. The first step to privacy should be a secure browser that focuses on tracker reduction to a minimum.
Even if you employ a secure browser, you will not be able to access websites that are restricted due to local government laws or other reasons. In other words, you may not be able to stream Disney+ or US-based Netflix in some countries. To bypass these restrictions, you can employ a powerful VPN, which provides dedicated servers for torrenting and streaming, not slowing you down in the process.
Data backups are important - recover your lost files
Ransomware is one of the biggest threats to personal data.
Once it is executed on a machine, it launches a sophisticated encryption algorithm that locks all your files, although it does not destroy them. The most common misconception is that anti-malware software can return files to their previous states. This is not true, however, and data remains locked after the malicious payload is deleted.
While regular data backups are the only secure method to recover your files after a ransomware attack, tools such as can also be effective and restore at least some of your lost data.
From our report of Feb 2020 · not reviewed since
Get rid of Search.emailsearchtools.com and all of the induced changes
If you are looking for a way to remove Search.emailsearchtools.com from your operating system and web browsers, you have come to the right place.
Here we are going to explain all the techniques that are possible for a proper browser hijacker elimination process. Do not forget that the PUP might have brought and hidden unwanted components in your computer system that need to be terminated too, otherwise, the browser hijacker might return again.
So when you are ready to free your machine from the cyber threat, you should choose which way you will go towards Search.emailsearchtools.com removal. A piece of advice would be to use reliable antimalware software as these tools are capable of detecting the suspicious program and getting rid of it within a few clicks.
However, you can terminate the browser hijacker by employing manual step-by-step guidelines that have been added to the end of this article. Here you will learn how to uninstall Email Search Tools from web browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Explorer, Edge, and Safari.
Questions about Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools
How do I change my search engine back from search.emailsearchtools.com?
Open the browser's search engine settings, choose the search engine you want and set it as default, then remove search.emailsearchtools.com from the list.
If the option is greyed out or a note says it is controlled by an extension, remove that extension first and try again. If the browser says it is managed by your organization, a policy holds the setting, and the policy steps in this guide apply.
When the change will not stick, reset the browser: it restores the default search engine and start page and turns off extensions, but keeps bookmarks and saved passwords. Then check Installed apps for a program that may put search.emailsearchtools.com back.
Did search.emailsearchtools.com come with a program I installed?
Most likely, yes. Search hijackers such as search.emailsearchtools.com usually arrive with free software, where an extra offer is pre-ticked in the installer, or as an extension that promises something useful, such as file conversion, maps, recipes or streaming.
Look at Settings, Apps, Installed apps sorted by install date: whatever was installed just before the search engine changed is the main suspect. Uninstall it, then remove any extension you do not recognise. In future, choose the custom or advanced option in installers and untick extra offers, and install extensions only from the official store pages of publishers you know.
Why do my searches go to search.emailsearchtools.com?
Because the browser's default search engine was changed to it. Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools did that through an extension, a program or a browser policy, and as long as that source remains, the setting points to search.emailsearchtools.com.
The page then passes your query to a real search provider, so the results look almost normal, with extra sponsored links on top. Changing the search engine back on its own does not last, because the source resets it. Remove the extension or program first, then the policies if any, then set your own search engine.
Is it safe to keep searching with search.emailsearchtools.com?
We would not. Every query you type is logged by its operators and shared with their advertising partners, and the sponsored links at the top are chosen for payment, not relevance. Results that look like a download page or a support site may lead to scams.
The page will not damage Windows by itself, but there is no benefit in keeping it: the results come from another search engine anyway. Remove Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools and use that search engine directly, by typing its address or choosing it in the browser settings.
Which browsers does Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools affect?
We saw it in Chrome, Edge and Firefox. That does not mean the other browsers on your PC are safe: hijacker installers usually change every browser they find, and browser sync can carry an extension to other computers signed in to the same account.
Check the search engine, home page, new tab, extensions and policies in each browser you have, including ones you rarely open. Chrome and Edge profiles count separately, so switch to each profile and check it as well before you call the job done.
What does search.emailsearchtools.com know about me?
It knows what you searched for while it was your search engine, when, from which IP address and with which browser, and usually which results you opened. Tracking cookies let it connect those searches into a profile. It does not see your saved passwords or files.
After removing Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools, delete the cookies and site data for search.emailsearchtools.com so the profile cannot be continued, and remove it from the browser's list of saved search engines. Signing out of important sites and back in also replaces session cookies.
The results look like Google or Bing. Is that real?
Partly. Many hijacker search pages pass your query to a real search engine and show its results, so the list looks familiar. What changes is the frame around it:
- extra sponsored links at the top
- the hijacker's own tracking
- sometimes a design that copies a known search engine
You can tell by the address bar. If it shows search.emailsearchtools.com or another unfamiliar domain instead of the search engine you know, the results come through a middleman. Remove Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools and search directly.
I changed the search engine, but it switched back. Why?
The hijacker is still installed, and it rewrites the setting whenever the browser starts or the extension updates. Changing the setting is the last step, not the first. Find what controls it: the search settings page usually names the extension, and a greyed-out field means a policy.
Remove that source, restart the browser, then pick your search engine and delete the hijacker's entry from the list of saved search engines so it cannot be chosen by accident. Check again after a day, when extensions have had a chance to update.
Will resetting the browser remove Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools?
A reset disables extensions, restores the default search engine, start page and new tab, and clears temporary data and cookies. It keeps bookmarks, history and saved passwords. For many hijackers that is enough.
It does not remove a program installed in Windows, policies in the registry, changes to the hosts file or DNS, or edited shortcuts, so Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools can come back after a reset if one of those remains. Do the reset after removing the program and policies, not instead of it.
Will Fortect remove Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools?
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 Search.emailsearchtools.com/Email Search Tools, 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
- Wikipedia: Potentially unwanted program (PUP) (read October 6, 2026)
- Norton: Trojan (read October 6, 2026)
- Virusai: Virusai.lt (read October 6, 2026)
- FTC: How to recognize, remove and avoid malware (read October 6, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Defender Offline (read October 6, 2026)