Search Power: what it is and how to remove it
Search Power is the potentially unwanted program that affects your browsing and searches because it shows altered results injected with commercial, sponsored content.
If your web browser gets redirected and search results appear not improved but affected in a negative way, you need to react to the search engine and other browser setting changes and look for the unwanted program that resides in the background that triggers all these changes and symptoms creating frustration.
Facts checked October 7, 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 Power: summary
| Distribution | Misleading sites, fake updates, and installers, shady installations of freeware when software bundling is used |
|---|---|
| Name | Search Power |
| Type | Browser hijacker/ Potentially unwanted program |
| Symptoms | The program affects the results of your browsing searches, so the browsing experience is affected, and you more likely to get exposed to sponsored material where views, visits, and clicks get monetized. These manipulated settings also affect the performance significantly |
| Danger | Deceptive sites and commercial content exposes to possibly harmful material and can lead to malicious infections. Also, third-party involvement can lead to privacy or security issues |
| Detection names | No Microsoft detection name is known |
| 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 5 more facts
| Damage | Not recorded in the old report |
|---|---|
| Evidence | 4 write-ups by security sites; details still limited |
| Program | Search Power |
| First seen | 18 June 2020 |
| Facts checked | 7 October 2026 |
Is Search Power dangerous? What it collects
From our report of Jun 2020 · not reviewed since
Search Power - the browser hijacker that generates advertising revenue from redirects, affected search results
Search Power is the potentially unwanted program that affects your browsing and searches because it shows altered results injected with commercial, sponsored content.
If your web browser gets redirected and search results appear not improved but affected in a negative way, you need to react to the search engine and other browser setting changes and look for the unwanted program that resides in the background that triggers all these changes and symptoms creating frustration.
Browser hijacker changes the default search engine to a different site that you normally use and can also add browser extensions, add-ons, plugins to control every search that you launched on Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari.
Unfortunately, this intrusive behavior encourages users to call the program a Search Power virus. It redirects to various engines, commercial sites, and most likely going to focus on generating revenue or ad-tracking functions since the PUP is sponsored by other advertisers and various third-party companies.
However, these web browsing tool changes are not the only symptoms of the intruder, and once your device is affected by the PUP, you need a thorough cleaning process to tackle the infection fully.
Search Power is the program that manages to get on the system and affect the speed, performance in a negative way. Even though all the promotional ads for this search engine state about improved search results and boats in the performance and information gathering.
SearchPower adds various tools and files to keep the persistence up, so when you notice the search engine loaded on your screen, you can know that other programs will keep this site on the browser for a longer period. Also, those changes that the hijack makes are not easily changeable. Going through every part of the browser settings section can take time and still give no results.
You need to perform proper Search Power removal by eliminating all PUPs, and do that as soon as you notice any of these:
Make sure to clean the machine fully when you encounter Search Power redirects, so you can avoid any infection repetition and ensure that your privacy is no longer at risk. Also, repeat the security scan twice to be completely sure and run for corrupted file recovery and system function repair.
Browser hijackers categorize as potentially unwanted programs because installations happen behind users' back and sometimes stealthily. Search Power is known for triggering downloads and installs on other unwanted applications. Redirect viruses, toolbars, browser extensions, unwanted tabs, and other content can significantly affect the performance of your PC too.
Search Power PUP is promoted with the help of shareware and freeware as an additional part of the downloaded bundle. This method is quite unfair because you can easily miss this sentence that notifies about the installation of this search site.
If you want to avoid PUPs, you have to uncheck all the checkboxes that allow developers to install bloatware on your machine. If that is not done during installations, you get this intruder.
This is why we always talk about the persistent and intrusive Search Power hijack and other potentially unwanted programs. Even though all the symptoms are triggered on the browser and involve online behavior, the program itself is running in the background, so all the issues get triggered automatically from the system.
So you need to remove Search Power using proper system tools that can check various parts of the system and indicate threats, associated files, programs and even delete them fully from the system.
You do not have the time for this yourself since manually checking every folder, and web browsing tool is a serious job. You can reset browsers fully to default, and save some time, but the machine still remains affected by the PUP.
- changed browser's default search engine;
- altered search queries;
- added browser extensions.
From our report of Jun 2020 · not reviewed since
More from our earlier report on Search Power
- SearchPower removal procedure provides the best results for you when the proper anti-malware tools get used.
- Security tools are needed since PUPs have other applications that may interfere with the persistence while running in the background
- To properly clean the system and recover from virus damage, you should run the tool like that can detect affected files, corrupted software and possibly repair those issues automatically
From our report of Jun 2020 · not reviewed since
The danger of deceptive pages and shady online content
Many cyber intruders that focus on creating browsing issues for the user can infiltrate the machine via deceptive sites and misleading online content.
If you constantly visit on pages that offer free downloads, show advertisements, promotional material, or even distributes software, you can get infections like these.
Paying close attention is important because skipping through steps during installation, downloading the program from unreliable sources can automatically trigger the download of the PUP because you are no the one that controls those processes. Especially when you choose Recommended or Quick installation options. Experts always talk about the importance of the Advanced freeware installations.
If you want to avoid these unwanted programs and shady infections, you need to go for official sites, providers, or developers and get programs from there instead of pop-up ads and promotional domains. Another tip is to choose Advanced or Custom options during every installation process. This way you can see all the included applications and block any suspicious ones by deselecting them from the list.
How to remove Search Power
How to remove Search Power 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 Power 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
Search Power replaces the browser's default search engine, so searches pass through its own page first. Chrome: Settings > Search engine > Manage search engines and site search, then Make default on Google, Bing or another engine you chose, and Delete on the entries you never added.
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 any address you did not set. 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 Search Power
Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps in Windows 11, or Settings > Apps > Apps & features in Windows 10. Sort the list by install date and find Search Power, then choose Uninstall from the three-dot menu next to it (in Windows 10, click the entry and then Uninstall).
Remove anything else installed on the same day that you do not recognise, because such programs usually arrive together in one installer. If the uninstaller opens a browser page with an offer or a survey, close it: the program is removed either way.
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
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
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)
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.
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 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, can also help to recover at least some portion of your data after data-locking virus infection or general cyber infection.
From our report of Jun 2020 · not reviewed since
Get rid of the shady Search Power PUP and forget about useless redirects and browser-based applications
To remove Search Power safely and forget about the unwanted content that this program shows to you, you should use tools designed for cleaning the system thoroughly like security utilities and AV engines. Any anti-malware that you trust can be employed for the job. Uninstalling the program is not enough since there might be additional tools or harmful programs added to the system.
Make sure that you eliminate all possible threats, additional programs, files that trigger background processes form the system, and change browser setting back to default.
This way, you will get a chance to ensure that there are no browser hijacker components left on your system. Also, remember to clear the damage that the Search Power virus may cause behind your back. You can do that with system optimizers and tools listed as PC repair.
Questions about Search Power
Can I safely uninstall Search Power?
If you did not install Search Power yourself and it is not part of your hardware or a program you rely on, yes. Uninstalling an unwanted program does not harm Windows. Before you do, search the exact name and publisher to be sure it is not a driver tool, a printer utility or a game launcher with an odd name.
Then remove it from Settings, Apps, Installed apps. Ignore any offers or warnings in its uninstaller about losing protection or performance. Afterwards check Startup apps and your browsers for leftovers, and restart once to confirm that it does not reinstall itself.
Search Power came back after I uninstalled it. Why?
Something else is reinstalling it. Common causes are a second program from the same publisher, a scheduled task that downloads it again, or a browser extension that keeps prompting for it. Sort Installed apps by install date and uninstall each entry from the same day that you did not choose.
Then open Task Scheduler and look in the Task Scheduler Library for tasks with updater-style names that you do not recognise. Check Startup apps in Task Manager too. If Search Power still returns, start Windows in Safe Mode, uninstall it there and run a Microsoft Defender offline scan, which looks for loaders that ordinary scans can miss.
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 Power?
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 Power can come back after a reset if one of those remains. Do the reset after removing the program and policies, not instead of it.
Should I just switch to another browser?
It may not help. Installers that add hijackers usually target every browser on the PC, and system-level changes such as the hosts file, DNS or proxy affect all browsers at once. A new browser also leaves the hijacker's program and extension in place, collecting data in the old one.
Remove Search Power properly first. After that, use whichever browser you prefer; Chrome, Edge and Firefox all let you set and protect your own search engine. Import your bookmarks only after the old browser is clean.
What is Search Power?
Search Power is the potentially unwanted program that affects your browsing and searches because it shows altered results injected with commercial, sponsored content.
If your web browser gets redirected and search results appear not improved but affected in a negative way, you need to react to the search engine and other browser setting changes and look for the unwanted program that resides in the background that triggers all these changes and symptoms creating frustration.
The summary table at the top of this guide lists the type, the detection names, the symptoms and the damage of Search Power.
How did Search Power get on my computer?
Our report lists the distribution as misleading sites, fake updates, and installers, shady installations of freeware when software bundling is used. Software of this kind often comes bundled with free programs, fake updates or downloads from unofficial sites.
It can also arrive through a browser extension or a notification you allowed on a spam page. Think back to what you installed or allowed just before the first ad or redirect appeared.
Will my antivirus detect Search Power?
Not always, because our check found no Microsoft Defender detection name for it. Our check found no Microsoft Defender detection name for it, so a scan may not name it. Update the security program first, then run a full scan instead of a quick one.
Also scan with a second on-demand scanner, because one program can miss what another finds. A clean scan does not prove the signs are gone, so check the browser extensions and installed programs by hand too.
Will Fortect remove Search Power?
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 Power, 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: Pay-per-click (read October 7, 2026)
- Searchsecurity: PUP (read October 7, 2026)
- DieViren: Dieviren (read October 7, 2026)
- FTC: How to recognize, remove and avoid malware (read October 7, 2026)
- Microsoft Learn: Microsoft Defender Offline (read October 7, 2026)