Search.yahoo.com redirect. How to remove? (Uninstall guide)
Search.yahoo.com is a legitimate search directory which is used by browser hijackers
Search.yahoo.com is a legitimate search directory which can be misused by browser hijackers.
Questions about search.yahoo.com redirect
Search.yahoo.com is a legitimate search directory which is often exploited by browser hijackers. In reality, this search engine is developed by the widely known Yahoo company and is entirely reliable. Although, users infected with browser hijackers can often be redirected to Search.yahoo.com once they perform a search on a fraudulent search directory. Likewise, online forums are filled with claims about Search.yahoo.com virus. However, this program is not malicious itself rather than exploited by cybercriminals without permission.
| Name | Search.yahoo.com |
|---|---|
| Type | Legitimate search engine |
| Danger level | Low. Provides reliable services unless used by potentially unwanted programs |
| Main issue | A vast of browser hijackers redirect users to this site once the search is performed on a fraudulent search directory |
| Distribution | Browser hijackers which misuse Yahoo services can enter the system during the installation of freeware |
| Elimination | If you notice a potentially dangerous program redirecting you to this search engine, you can uninstall Search.yahoo.com virus with Reimage |
The reason why fraudulent search directories are redirecting users to Search.yahoo.com to display search results is the aim to impersonate legitimate services. Since browser hijackers are considered to be potentially unwanted programs (PUPs) criminals try to find ways how to trick users into believing that they are trustworthy. Using legitimate Search.yahoo.com services is one of the methods to increase reliability.
If you have already noticed redirects to Search.yahoo.com or r.search.yahoo on your IE, Mozilla, Chrome or another web browser, you should think what free software[1] have you recently installed on your PC. Usually, these unwanted activities are noticed after installing one of the following programs which might hide a browser hijacker inside:
- Download manager;
- PDF creator;
- Video streaming software;
- Etc.
As soon as browser hijackers are installed on the system, they may start such unwanted activity as tracking of people's search sessions,[2] collecting their non-personally identifiable information, causing ads or redirects to sponsored websites by using Search.yahoo.com.
Browser hijackers redirect search query results to Search.yahoo.com site.
You could suspect that your computer is infected with a browser hijacker which exploits Search.yahoo.com if Yahoo search became your default search engine suddenly. Other symptoms of the affected web browser might be:
- inability to set preferred homepage or/and search engine;
- increased amount of online ads;
- random text turned into hyperlinks;
- redirects to suspicious sites.
If any of these activities can be noticed on any of your web browsers, be aware that your browser might be hijacked. Usually, Yahoo services cannot be categorized as malicious. Although, experts note that Search.yahoo.com virus term stands for the potentially dangerous activity by browser hijackers.
Users can unconsciously install Search.yahoo.com browser hijacker via software-bundles.
We strongly recommend choosing reliable search engines and avoid trusting browser hijackers. If you want to protect your PC and private data, remove Search.yahoo.com after you notice any suspicious activity. Manual elimination might be tricky. Thus, scan your system with a professional security tool, like Reimage.
After Search.yahoo.com removal you should take a look at the affected browsers. Usually, browser hijackers modify browser settings to persist as the primary search provider. Likewise, it is essential to reset the altered settings and uninstall all questionable entries. For that we suggest reading detailed instructions at the end of this report.
Advertising activities help Yahoo generate revenue
Search.yahoo.com is often exploited by browser hijackers to generate advertising revenue.
It is evident that Yahoo Search is used for advertising purposes. Usually, users infected with so-called Yahoo Search virus can notice a significant increase in online ads, survey offers or other commercial content. Keep in mind that developers gain pay-per-click[3] or pay-per-install[4] revenue and might even promote potentially dangerous applications and websites.
Therefore, you should consider Yahoo Search removal once it appears on your browser out of nowhere. For that, we would like to recommend you to scan your computer with Reimage. Anti-malware/anti-spyware[5] software helps identify computer infection and clean device safely.
Search.yahoo.com is not a virus, yet it's services are often misused by potentially unwanted programs.
Colleagues from Germany[6] also noticed that majority of potentially unwanted applications track various information about users. Not only these programs can collect non-personally identifiable information, but sometimes they are trying to get access to personally identifiable details.
It goes without saying you need to uninstall Yahoo Search if you want to protect sensitive information. If your logins, banking information and other details are visible for cyber criminals, you might suffer from money loss or identity theft.[7]
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
Product bundling allows browser hijackers to enter the targeted systems
A vast of potentially unwanted programs (PUPs) use same distribution techniques to reach targeted computers. One of the most popular one is called bundling which allows browser hijackers to travel as one program with third-party Spigbot apps, including the following:
- Extensions[8];
- Plug-ins;
- Add-ons;
- Toolbars.
As soon as the person installs the software-bundle, computer is infected with a browser hijacker. This issue shows up on all the most popular web browsers, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Internet Explorer. To prevent this from happening, you should always pay an appropriate amount of attention to the freeware's installation process.
It's advisable to read EULA, Privacy Policy, and other accessible information about your selected program. By the way, you should opt for Advanced or Custom installation option and carefully check the entire process.
During software installation, your main task is to find the list of “optional downloads” and opt out of all programs that are promoted there. NEVER agree to set an unknown search site as your start page and search provider because you may later experience various issues.
Uninstalling so-called Yahoo Search virus requires professional help
Even though you might find Search.yahoo.com among Yahoo redirect virus reviews, this application is not categorized as a malicious program. In fact, it is classified as a potentially unwanted program which does not perform system changes. However, experts warn that browser modifications are not essential for an enhanced browsing experience. Thus, it is better to remove Search.yahoo.com.
For that, we present you two different options – manual Yahoo Search removal and automatic elimination option. According to PC security experts, the first option can be used only when you know the names of potentially unwanted programs that are causing redirects to this search engine.
To take care of Yahoo Search removal on Mac, you should also know names of related adware. If you are not sure what cyber parasite infected your device, you should opt for the automatic Search.yahoo.com removal and let anti-malware program to identify and remove it.
You can remove virus damage automatically with a help of one of these programs: Reimage, Malwarebytes MalwarebytesCombo Cleaner, Plumbytes Anti-MalwareMalwarebytes Malwarebytes. We recommend these applications because they detect potentially unwanted programs and viruses with all their files and registry entries that are related to them.
To remove search.yahoo.com redirect, follow these steps:
Remove search.yahoo.com from Windows systems
To uninstall Yahoo manually, you need to check recently installed programs. If you find some unknown software, uninstall it immediately. It might be responsible for hijacking your browser.
-
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.yahoo.com and related programs
Here, look for search.yahoo.com or any other recently installed suspicious programs. -
Uninstall them and click OK to save these changes.
- Remove search.yahoo.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 ChromeSafariGet rid of search.yahoo.com from Mac OS X system
To remove this hijacker from Mac, you should uninstall every application that was installed on your computer on the same day when this search engine showed up on your computer. If you found search.yahoo.com set as your default search engine, make sure you reset all web browsers.
-
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.yahoo.com or any other suspicious programs on it. Now right click on every of such entries and select Move to Trash.
Eliminate search.yahoo.com from Internet Explorer (IE)
To delete the cause of Yahoo hijack, you have to eliminate all suspicious components. We highly recommend reseting the browser.
-
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.yahoo.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.yahoo.com removal.
Uninstall search.yahoo.com redirect from Microsoft Edge
Follow the instructions to fix Microsoft Edge after the hijack.
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.yahoo.com should be removed from your Microsoft Edge browser.
WindowsMac OS XInternet ExplorerMicrosoft EdgeFirefoxGoogle ChromeSafariErase search.yahoo.com from Mozilla Firefox (FF)
If your default search engine was changed to search.yahoo.com, you need to delete suspicious add-ons and then reset the browser.
-
Remove dangerous extensions
Open Mozilla Firefox, click on the menu icon (top right corner) and select Add-ons → Extensions. -
Here, select search.yahoo.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.
-
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.yahoo.com removal.
Delete search.yahoo.com from Google Chrome
One of the reasons why search.yahoo.com appeared on Chrome is infiltration of potentially dangerous extension. To fix Chrome, your task is to find this PUP and uninstall it. We also suggest resetting the browser in order to get rid of tracking cookies.
-
Delete malicious plugins
Open Google Chrome, click on the menu icon (top right corner) and select Tools → Extensions. -
Here, select search.yahoo.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.yahoo.com removal.
Remove search.yahoo.com from Safari
To forget about this virus on Safari, you should check the list of extensions and uninstall unknown entries. It is also recommended resetting the browser.
- 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.yahoo.com or other suspicious entries. Click on the Uninstall button to get rid each of them.
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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.yahoo.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.yahoo.com removal process.
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References
- ^ Freeware - The Good, The Bad, And the Dangerous. Security Response by Symantec. The site provides unparalleled analysis of and protection from IT security threats.
- ^ Jeremy Kirk. Researchers reveal 3 devious ways online trackers shatter your privacy and follow your digital footsteps. PCWorld. News, tips and reviews from the experts on PCs, Windows and more.
- ^ What Is PPC? Learn the Basics of Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Marketing. WordStream. Online Advertising Made Easy.
- ^ Brian Krebs. Most Malware Tied to 'Pay-Per-Install' Market. MIT. Technology Review.
- ^ Ugnius Kiguolis. Anti-spyware. NoVirus. The website about computer viruses, latest industry news and malware removal instructions.
- ^ DieViren. DieViren. Informational site about computer viruses and their removal for German users.
- ^ Dave Drager. 9 Ways to Prevent Identity Theft From Your Online Activities. MakeUseOf. The website about technology and modern gadgets.
- ^ Browser extension. Wikipedia. The Free Encyclopedia.