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Spyware News
  • Active
  • Severity: Medium
  • Browser Hijackers
  • Windows, Mac
  • Verified · Feb 2020

How to remove Search.friendlysocket.com virus

A step-by-step removal guide for affected devices. Follow the verified procedure below — most readers complete it in under 10 minutes.

Lucia Danes · Virus researcher

Search.friendlysocket.com is a shady search tool that mostly appears on macOS systems 

Search.friendlysocket.com virus

Search.friendlysocket.com virus may seem like an ordinary search tool but it truly falls in the browser hijacker category. Even though the home page of the tool is presented in English, the news section seems to be oriented toward Jewish speakers. However, most likely English speaking-users, American, UK[1]netizens are likely to notice this product. Friendlysocket aims to modify the web browser's default search engine, homepage, and new tab URL to its own. Afterward, the users are forced to complete search queries via the new search provider that gathers search results from another legitimate search engine -Yahoo. As you can see, there is no purpose for using the services provided by Search.friendlysocket.com as you can just employ the original search provider instead.

Furthermore, Search.friendlysocket.com seems identical to other questionable browser engines recently spotted online: Pogypon, Bitmotion, etc. These apps try to convince the user about their useful functionality. For example, they provide quick access to various web sources, social platforms, and e-shopping pages. However, note that browser hijackers often have a questionable reputation as they come secretly bundled with various free programs from the Internet.

Name Search.friendlysocket.com/Friendlysocket
Type/category Browser hijacker/potentially unwanted program
Similar apps Pogypon, Bitmotion
Activities The browser hijacker aims to change major browser settings such as the default search engine, new tab URL, and the homepage to its own. Continuously, the PUP is likely to produce intrusive advertisements, redirect the user to sponsored sources, and collect non-personal information
Distribution These types of products often come through bogus freeware and shareware that can be downloaded from questionable sources such as cnet.com, download.com, and soft32.com. Also, you can install browser hijackers from infectious advertisements and hyperlinks that you find on unsecured websites
Elimination You can get rid of the browser-hijacking application with the help of reliable antimalware software or by using the manual step-by-step guidelines that have been added to the end of this article
Fix tip If you have discovered some alterings on your Mac or Windows computer system, you can try repairing the device with the help of software such as FortectIntego

Friendly socket Mac can appear in the Applications section of your Mac device. However, if it is a Windows computer that you are running, the browser hijacker might appear in the Programs & Features section and also fill the Task Manager with suspicious processes. Web browsers such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, or Safari are also likely to get hijacked and their major settings modified.

Friendlysocket.com can also include questionable-looking browser extensions, plug-ins, and add-ons into your web browser that can serve for various purposes such as pay-per-click advertising[2] and redirecting. The browser hijacker might start spamming you with suspicious offers and deals during your browsing sessions in order to collect income from your clicks on the provided adverts.

Search.friendlysocket.com PUP

Furthermore, Search.friendlysocket.com can trick you into buying useless products or subscribing to unneeded services. So, be careful not to lose your money for stuff that you truly do not need. Also, the provided advertisements can aim to redirect you to sponsored sources where you can be loaded with even more suggestions. Nevertheless, you can get redirected to a potentially dangerous website that is filled with malicious pieces of software.

To continue, Search.friendlysocket.com might install flash cookies or pixels[3] into the hijacked web browser that allow tracking non-personal information. The PUP can spy on data such as your browser type, IP address, commonly visited websites, hyperlinks clicked, saved bookmarks, and similar details. According to the Privacy Policy, this type of information can be shared with other parties if it is found as beneficial:

We may share non-personally identifiable information with third parties, when this is required in order to provide, maintain or improve the Friendlysocket operation and services. We may NOT share personally identifiable information with any third party, except in an aggregated and/or statistical form.

If Search.friendlysocket.com initiates multiple activities per one session (advertising, redirecting, etc.), your web browser might start struggling to perform even simple actions as it will be overloaded with unnecessary work. The same can happen to your computer system and you might see changes in your CPU power level. If the energy rises over 60% and more, you can start receiving serious system slowdowns and even crashes.

However, avoiding such trouble is possible by performing the Search.friendlysocket.com removal process once you see that your browser settings such as the search engine, homepage, and new tab URL have been hijacked. Perform a full malware scan to identify the browser hijacker and all the additional components that it might have brought to your computer system. Also, if you have discovered any altered areas, you can try repairing them with a tool such as FortectIntego.

There are many reasons to remove Search.friendlysocket.com from your operating system and web browsers. You should know that you can always use an alternative and legitimate search engine instead of employing this program's services. Using Google, Bing, or Yahoo will be much safer and you can create the same shortcuts to popular web pages by adding bookmarks to the upper bar of your browser window.

Search.friendlysocket.com browser hijacker

Ways to detect PUPs before they settle on your PC

This sort of hijacker is likely to be promoted through sponsored domains in the form of web scripts. You might have likely been redirected to this website after you clicked on a link in site overcrowded with fake “download” buttons.

There is also another common method for distributing PUP-like programs. They are pinned down to free applications, for instance, free file converters or media players. Thus, in order to spot them on time, it is recommended to opt for “Custom” settings instead of the “Recommended” settings and deselect all unwanted add-ons. Furthermore, you should avoid downloading software from untrustable sources such as cnet.com, download.com, or soft32.com.

In addition, browser hijackers can get downloaded from infectious advertisements that are distributed on third-party sources all over the Internet. If you are ever encouraged to proceed to a website that you consider not to be safe – do not do that. Also, always think twice before pressing on a particular ad as it might seak to plant a PUP on your computer system. Last but not least, employ reliable antimalware software and always check the program's virus-related alerts.

Delete Friendlysocket components from the OS and browsers

Since it is not an elaborate virus[4], you do not need to go through the troublesome elimination. You can remove Search.friendlysocket.com web scripts with the assistance of an anti-spyware program. This type of software can help you to get rid of the browser hijacker within a few minutes of time and delete all the additional products that it has brought to the computer system together with itself.

Alternatively, the below-provided instructions will come in handy as well if you are likely to get rid of the potentially unwanted program on your own. Full browser reset function facilitates Search.friendlysocket.com removal. Check whether it did not append any additional browser add-ons. You should search and refresh all of the possibly-infected web browsers, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, and Safari.

Uninstall from Windows

Uninstall from Windows 10/8:

  1. Type Control Panel into the Windows search box and open the result.
  2. Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.Uninstall from Windows 10/8

Uninstall from Windows 7/XP:

  1. Click on Windows Start > Control Panel (Windows XP users should click on Add/Remove Programs).
  2. In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.Uninstall from Windows 7/XP

Remove the unwanted program:

  1. In the Programs and Features window, look for any recently installed suspicious entries, select them, and click Uninstall.
  2. If User Account Control appears, click Yes to confirm, then complete the removal.Uninstall the unwanted program from Windows

Delete from macOS

Remove the unwanted application:

  1. From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
  2. In the Applications folder, look for any suspicious entries, then drag them to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash).Uninstall from Mac

Delete leftover files and folders:

  1. Select Go > Go to Folder.
  2. Enter /Library/Application Support and remove any suspicious folders related to the unwanted program.
  3. Repeat the same check in the /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders, deleting any suspicious entries.Delete leftover files from Mac
  4. Finally, empty the Trash to permanently remove the leftovers.

Reset Internet Explorer

Remove dangerous add-ons:

  1. Open Internet Explorer, click on the Gear icon (IE menu) on the top-right corner of the browser
  2. Pick Manage Add-ons.
  3. You will see a Manage Add-ons window. Here, look for suspicious plugins. Click on these entries and select Disable.Remove add-ons from Internet Explorer

Change your homepage if it was altered:

  1. Open IE and click on the Gear icon.
  2. Select Internet Options.
  3. In the General tab, delete the Home page address and replace it by your preferred one (for example, Google.com).
  4. Click Apply and then select OK.Reset IE homepage

Delete temporary files:

  1. Press on the Gear icon and select Internet Options.
  2. Under Browsing history, click Delete...
  3. Select relevant fields and press Delete.Clear temporary files from Internet Explorer

Reset Internet Explorer:

  1. Click on Gear icon > Internet options and select Advanced tab.
  2. Select Reset.
  3. In the new window, check Delete personal settings and select Reset.Reset Internet Explorer

Remove from Microsoft Edge

Delete unwanted extensions from MS Edge:

  1. Select Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and pick Extensions.
  2. From the list, pick the extension and click on the Gear icon.
  3. Click Remove.Remove extensions from Edge

Clear cookies and other browser data:

  1. Click on the Menu (three horizontal dots at the top-right of the browser window) and select Settings > Privacy, search, and services..
  2. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
  3. 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.Clear Edge browsing data

Restore new tab and homepage settings:

  1. Click the menu icon and choose Settings.
  2. Then find On startup section.
  3. Click Remove next to any suspicious startup page.

Reset MS Edge if the above steps did not work:

  1. Press on Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager.
  2. Click on More details arrow at the bottom of the window.
  3. Select Details tab.
  4. 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.Reset MS Edge

Instructions for Chromium-based Edge

Delete extensions from MS Edge (Chromium):

  1. Open Edge and click select Settings > Extensions.
  2. Delete unwanted extensions by clicking Remove.Remove extensions from Chromium Edge

Clear cache and site data:

  1. Click on Menu and go to Settings.
  2. Select Privacy, search and services.
  3. Under Clear browsing data, pick Choose what to clear.
  4. Under Time range, pick All time.
  5. Select Clear now.Clear browser data from Chroum Edge

Reset Chromium-based MS Edge:

  1. Click on Menu and select Settings.
  2. On the left side, pick Reset settings.
  3. Select Restore settings to their default values.
  4. Confirm with Reset.
  5. This will disable extensions and reset startup pages but will not delete bookmarks, saved passwords, or browsing history.Reset Chromium Edge

Remove from Mozilla Firefox (FF)

Remove dangerous extensions:

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click on the Menu (three horizontal lines at the top-right of the window).
  2. Select Add-ons.
  3. In here, select the unwanted extension and click Remove.Remove extensions from Firefox

Reset the homepage:

  1. Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
  2. Choose Settings.
  3. Under Home, set your preferred homepage and new tab settings.

Clear cookies and site data:

  1. Click Menu and pick Settings.
  2. Go to Privacy & Security section.
  3. Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
  4. Click on Clear Data...
  5. Select Cookies and Site Data and Temporary cached files and pages, then click Clear.Clear cookies and site data from Firefox

Reset Mozilla Firefox

If clearing the browser as explained above did not help, reset Mozilla Firefox:

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click the Menu.
  2. Go to Help and then choose Troubleshooting Information.Reset Firefox 1
  3. Under Give Firefox a tune up section, click on Refresh Firefox...
  4. Once the pop-up shows up, confirm the action by pressing on Refresh Firefox.Reset Firefox 2

Remove from Google Chrome

Delete malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

  1. Open Google Chrome, click on the Menu (three vertical dots at the top-right corner) and select More tools > Extensions.
  2. In the newly opened window, you will see all the installed extensions. Uninstall all suspicious extensions related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove.Remove extensions from Chrome

Clear cache and web data from Chrome:

  1. Click on Menu and pick Settings.
  2. Under Privacy and security, select Clear browsing data.
  3. Select Browsing history, Cookies and other site data, as well as Cached images and files.
  4. Click Clear data.Clear cache and web data from Chrome

Change your homepage:

  1. Click menu and choose Settings.
  2. Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
  3. 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:

  1. Click on Menu and select Settings.
  2. In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
  3. Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
  4. Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
  5. Confirm with Reset settings.Reset Chrome 2

Delete from Safari

Remove dangerous extensions:

  1. Open Safari, click Safari in the menu at the top-left of the screen, and select Preferences.
  2. Go to the Extensions tab, look for any suspicious entries, and click Uninstall to remove them.Remove extensions from Safari

Clear history and website data:

  1. Click Safari in the menu and pick Clear History.
  2. Set Clear to all history and confirm with Clear History.Clear history from Safari

Reset Safari:

  1. Click Safari in the menu and select Preferences > Advanced.
  2. Enable Show Develop menu in menu bar.
  3. From the menu bar, click Develop and select Empty Caches.Reset Safari

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