Search.searchfefc3.com. How to remove? (Uninstall guide)
Search.searchfefc3.com is a dubious search engine that can observe users search history
Search.searchfefc3.com by Polarity Technologies is a questionable application that deems to help users to convert files directly from their Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Safari or another browser. However, it falls into browser hijacker[1] category due to its questionable distribution methods, browser setting modification and excessive advertisement techniques.
| SUMMARY | |
| Name | Search.searchfefc3.com |
|---|---|
| Type | Browser hijakcer |
| Created by | Polarity Technologies |
| Symtoms | Modified browser settings, ads delivered via pop-ups and redirects, slow browser, etc. |
| Distribution | Bundling |
| Removal recommendation | Download and install Reimage. Otherwise, check manual instructions below |
Just as many other hijackers (search.searchmpctpop.com, search.searchfefc.com, etc.) created by Polarity, users are promised an improved functionality, mainly by adding quick access buttons to the main page. The links range from multiple file converters to leading retailer stores and local weather.
However, you should not get tricked by this functionality. It is merely an attempt by developers to disguise the real objective, which is monetizing on users who are exposed to sponsored content continuously. Thus, do not waste your time and remove Search.searchfefc3.com from your computer.
East File Converter is a browser extension which attaches itself to each of the browsers as soon as Search.searchfefc3.com hijack occurs. To further establish its presence, the unwanted application modifies homepage and search engine address, setting it to hxxp://search.searchfefc3.com/.
This action denies users of any further modifications to be done to their browser settings unless the PUP is uninstalled. Thus, victims are forced to browse through a hijacked engine. The negative effects of a hijacked search engine are:
- Excessive advertising via ads, pop-ups, and redirects;
- Altered search results;
- Collection of non-personally identifiable information;[2]
- Installation of additional browser extensions;
- A slowdown of the browser, etc.
The advertisement delivered via ads and redirects typically lead to sponsors’ sites. This allows less-popular affiliates to boost traffic to their domains. For each click on the link, Polarity acquires revenue. Users’, however, are left with compromised browsers and gain nothing in return. Instead, their browsing sessions are ruined by a layer of ads each time they open their browsers.
Even if the ads can be annoying to deal with, it is not the primary danger of East File Converter virus. Users should be cautious if they get redirected to infected, phishing or fake software/updates websites. Thus, obtaining malware or revealing personal data after clicking on random links is just a question of time.
Therefore, do not click on any links, ads or content on the redirected domains. Instead, close down your browser and carry out Search.searchfefc3.com removal. To achieve that, you can download and install powerful security software – Reimage. Of course, you can pick another program of your choice, too.
Click 'Start -> Control Panel -> Programs and Features' (if you are 'Windows XP' user, click on 'Add/Remove Programs').
If you are 'Windows 10 / Windows 8' user, then right-click in the lower left corner of the screen. Once 'Quick Access Menu' shows up, select 'Control Panel' and 'Uninstall a Program'.
Right click on each of suspicious entries and select 'Uninstall'
Right click on browsers' icon and select 'Properties'
Select 'Shortcut' tab and delete 'http://isearch.babylon.com...' or other suspicious URL
Cick 'Go' and select 'Applications'
Click on every malicious entry and select 'Move to Trash'
Click on menu icon and select 'Manage add-ons'
Right click on each of malicious entries and select 'Disable'
Delete malicious URL, enter your desired domain name and click 'Apply' to save changes
Go to 'Advanced' tab and click on 'Reset' button. Now select 'Delete personal settings' and click on 'Reset' button again
Go to Settings and select 'Choose what to clear'
Select 'Clear' button
Open the start menu and select 'Task Manager'
Right-click 'Microsoft Edge' and select 'Go to details'
Select 'More details' if 'Go to details' option fails to show up
Find Microsoft Edge entries and select 'End Task'
Go to Microsoft Edge folder on your computer, right-click every entry and click 'Delete'
Find Windows PowerShell, right-click it and select 'Run as administrator'
Copy and paste a required command and press 'Enter'
Click on menu icon and select 'Add-ons'
Select 'Extensions' and look for malicious entries. Click 'Remove' to get rid of each of them
When in 'General' tab, delete malicious URL from 'Home Page' section or click on 'Restore to Default' button. Click 'OK' to save changes
Click on menu icon and then on '?'. Select 'Troubleshooting Information'
Click on 'Reset Firefox' button for a couple of times
Click on menu icon. Select 'Tools' and 'Extensions'
Look for malicious entries and delete each of them by clicking on the Trash bin icon
After clicking on menu and 'Settings', select 'Set pages'
Click 'X' to remove malicious URLs
When in 'Settings', select 'Manage search engines...'
Click 'X' to remove malicious URLs
When in 'Settings', scroll down to 'Reset browser settings' button and click on it
Click on 'Reset' button to complete your removal
Click on 'Safari' and select 'Preferences'
Go to 'Extensions' and uninstall malicious add-ons
When in 'General', delete malicious URL and enter your desired domain name
Click on 'Safari' and select 'Reset Safari...'
Select all options and click on 'Reset' button
Users fail to spot how browser hijackers infiltrate their machines
It has been awhile since the advertising bloomed on the internet, so users typically know that excessive ads cannot bring anything positive to them. Hence, users usually only install trusted add-ons that they find necessary to have. No wonder that PUP authors need a way to boost the popularity of their products. So they rely on software bundling – a deceptive marketing technique used by PUP creators and freeware developers.
Therefore, you need to familiarize yourself with this campaign, so you know how to avoid unnecessary programs next time you install free software. Please follow these simple tips:
- When installing free software, read through EULA and Privacy Policy attentively. Quite often, a lot of useful information can be provided there. Sometimes, you might even change your mind and decline the installation altogether;
- Once prompted, pick Advanced/Optional installation mode. Despite developers’ advice, never pick Recommended/Quick settings;
- Remove any tick marks you see by add-ons, toolbars, system optimizers, media players and other unwanted programs. If you find them useful, find a legitimate counterpart somewhere else (the promoted content is typically useless);
- Invest into a robust security software and keep it up to date. This allows you to protect yourself from not only PUPs but also dangerous malware.
Ways you can eliminate Search.searchfefc3.com browser hijacker
Security experts[3] concluded that that keeping a browser hijacker on your system cannot bring any benefits, but just the opposite. Therefore, if you want quick access buttons, you can simply add them to your favorites/bookmarks bar. Before that, however, remove East File Converter browser extension from your computer.
You can eliminate Search.searchfefc3.com virus by employing a reputable security tool. We suggest picking one of the programs mentioned below. Simply perform a full system scan and reset the settings of each of the browsers.
Another Search.searchfefc3.com removal method is also effective, although not that convenient and might even be too complicated. If you are familiar with computers and its processes, you can check our illustrated guide beneath.
You can remove Search.searchfefc3.com automatically with a help of one of these programs: Reimage, Plumbytes Anti-MalwareWebroot SecureAnywhere AntiVirus, Malwarebytes Anti Malware. We recommend these applications because they can easily delete potentially unwanted programs and viruses with all their files and registry entries that are related to them.
To remove Search.searchfefc3.com, follow these steps:
Uninstall Search.searchfefc3.com from Windows systems
To eliminate Search.searchfefc3.com from Windows, follow these steps:
-
Click Start → Control Panel → Programs and Features (if you are Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
-
If you are Windows 10 / Windows 8 user, then right-click in the lower left corner of the screen. Once Quick Access Menu shows up, select Control Panel and Uninstall a Program.
- Uninstall Search.searchfefc3.com and related programs
Here, look for Search.searchfefc3.com or any other recently installed suspicious programs. -
Uninstall them and click OK to save these changes.
- Remove Search.searchfefc3.com from Windows shortcuts
Right click on the shortcut of Mozilla Firefox and select Properties. -
Go to Shortcut tab and look at the Target field. Delete malicious URL that is related to your virus.
Repeat steps that are given above with all browsers' shortcuts, including Internet Explorer and Google Chrome. Make sure you check all locations of these shortcuts, including Desktop, Start Menu and taskbar.
WindowsMac OS XInternet ExplorerMicrosoft EdgeFirefoxGoogle ChromeSafariRemove Search.searchfefc3.com from Mac OS X system
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If you are using OS X, click Go button at the top left of the screen and select Applications.
-
Wait until you see Applications folder and look for Search.searchfefc3.com or any other suspicious programs on it. Now right click on every of such entries and select Move to Trash.
Delete Search.searchfefc3.com from Internet Explorer (IE)
-
Remove dangerous add-ons
Open Internet Explorer, click on the Gear icon (IE menu) on the top right corner of the browser and choose Manage Add-ons. -
You will see a Manage Add-ons window. Here, look for Search.searchfefc3.com and other suspicious plugins. Disable these entries by clicking Disable:
-
Change your homepage if it was altered by virus:
Click on the gear icon (menu) on the top right corner of the browser and select Internet Options. Stay in General tab. -
Here, remove malicious URL and enter preferable domain name. Click Apply to save changes.
-
Reset Internet Explorer
Click on the gear icon (menu) again and select Internet options. Go to Advanced tab. - Here, select Reset.
-
When in the new window, check Delete personal settings and select Reset again to complete Search.searchfefc3.com removal.
Eliminate Search.searchfefc3.com from Microsoft Edge
Reset Microsoft Edge settings (Method 1):
- Launch Microsoft Edge app and click More (three dots at the top right corner of the screen).
- Click Settings to open more options.
-
Once Settings window shows up, click Choose what to clear button under Clear browsing data option.
-
Here, select all what you want to remove and click Clear.
-
Now you should right-click on the Start button (Windows logo). Here, select Task Manager.
- When in Processes tab, search for Microsoft Edge.
-
Right-click on it and choose Go to details option. If can’t see Go to details option, click More details and repeat previous steps.
-
When Details tab shows up, find every entry with Microsoft Edge name in it. Right click on each of them and select End Task to end these entries.
Resetting Microsoft Edge browser (Method 2):
If Method 1 failed to help you, you need to use an advanced Edge reset method.
- Note: you need to backup your data before using this method.
- Find this folder on your computer:
C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Local\Packages\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe. -
Select every entry which is saved on it and right click with your mouse. Then Delete option.
- Click the Start button (Windows logo) and type in window power in Search my stuff line.
-
Right-click the Windows PowerShell entry and choose Run as administrator.
- Once Administrator: Windows PowerShell window shows up, paste this command line after PS C:\WINDOWS\system32> and press Enter:
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register $($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml -Verbose}
Once these steps are finished, Search.searchfefc3.com should be removed from your Microsoft Edge browser.
WindowsMac OS XInternet ExplorerMicrosoft EdgeFirefoxGoogle ChromeSafariErase Search.searchfefc3.com from Mozilla Firefox (FF)
Do not forget to reset your Firefox settings:
-
Remove dangerous extensions
Open Mozilla Firefox, click on the menu icon (top right corner) and select Add-ons → Extensions. -
Here, select Search.searchfefc3.com and other questionable plugins. Click Remove to delete these entries.
-
Change your homepage if it was altered by virus:
Click on the menu (top right corner), choose Options → General. - Here, delete malicious URL and enter preferable website or click Restore to default.
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Click OK to save these changes.
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Reset Mozilla Firefox
Click on the Firefox menu on the top left and click on the question mark. Here, choose Troubleshooting Information. -
Now you will see Reset Firefox to its default state message with Reset Firefox button. Click this button for several times and complete Search.searchfefc3.com removal.
Get rid of Search.searchfefc3.com from Google Chrome
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Delete malicious plugins
Open Google Chrome, click on the menu icon (top right corner) and select Tools → Extensions. -
Here, select Search.searchfefc3.com and other malicious plugins and select trash icon to delete these entries.
-
Change your homepage and default search engine if it was altered by your virus
Click on menu icon and choose Settings. -
Here, look for the Open a specific page or set of pages under On startup option and click on Set pages.
- Now you should see another window. Here, delete malicious search sites and enter the one that you want to use as your homepage.
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Click on menu icon again and choose Settings → Manage Search engines under the Search section.
-
When in Search Engines..., remove malicious search sites. You should leave only Google or your preferred domain name.
-
Reset Google Chrome
Click on menu icon on the top right of your Google Chrome and select Settings. -
Scroll down to the end of the page and click on Reset browser settings.
-
Click Reset to confirm this action and complete Search.searchfefc3.com removal.
Uninstall Search.searchfefc3.com from Safari
- Remove dangerous extensions
Open Safari web browser and click on Safari in menu at the top left of the screen. Once you do this, select Preferences. -
Here, select Extensions and look for Search.searchfefc3.com or other suspicious entries. Click on the Uninstall button to get rid each of them.
-
Change your homepage if it was altered by virus:
Open your Safari web browser and click on Safari in menu section. Here, select Preferences as it was displayed previously and select General. -
Here, look at the Homepage field. If it was altered by Search.searchfefc3.com, remove unwanted link and enter the one that you want to use for your searches. Remember to include the "http://" before typing in the address of the page.
-
Reset Safari
Open Safari browser and click on Safari in menu section at the top left of the screen. Here, select Reset Safari.... -
Now you will see a detailed dialog window filled with reset options. All of those options are usually checked, but you can specify which of them you want to reset. Click the Reset button to complete Search.searchfefc3.com removal process.
About the author
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References
- ^ Browser Hijacker. Technopedia. Site that helps to understand technology.
- ^ Non-Personally Identifiable Information . MMA. Mobile Marketing Association.
- ^ LesVirus. LesVirus. French IT experts.