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  • Active
  • Severity: High
  • Stealing programs
  • Windows, Mac
  • Verified · Sep 2017

How to remove Searchcompletion.com

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

Julie Splinters · Anti-malware specialist

Searchcompletion.com might hijack Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, and other web browsers

Screenshot of Searchcompletion.com

Searchcompletion.com is a dubious search engine that spreads with the help of freeware packages and Complitly browser extension. Thus, it can easily hijack the browser and force people to use this suspicious website. For the security experts, it is known as a potentially unwanted program (PUP)[1] and a browser hijacker.

Researchers detected two different domains that belong to the same SeachCompletion Search:

  • Searchcompletion.com,
  • Search.searchcompletion.com.

One of these websites is set as default search engine as soon as the hijacker enters the system. This results in annoying redirections every time you start browsing the web. Once you click on a link that is supposed to redirect you to a useful website, the Searchcompletion.com virus might interfere this action and make you visit a third-party site.

Searchcompletion.com is one of those websites that are officially created for searching the Internet but are also used for other purposes. On most of the occasions, such domains are blamed for giving altered search results for its users and making them visit those sites that seek to increase the number of their visitors. Of course, its owners do this for the monetization purposes.

However, Searchcompletion.com redirect problems are more than annoying. According to the researchers' team from Bedynet,[2] the hijacker might also redirect users to potentially dangerous websites. Thus, after one click, you might end up on tech support scam[3] or phishing site.

Undoubtedly, this activity should not be tolerated. If you suffer from these redirects and cannot customize your browser, you should remove Searchcompletion.com together with Complitlty extension. At the end of the article, you can find a detailed explanation how to do it manually.

However, our team suggests opting for the automatic Searchcompletion.com removal. For that, you have to obtain a professional anti-malware tool and run a full system scan with an updated program. We suggest dedicating this task for FortectIntego.

Illustration of Searchcompletion.com virus

Hijacker’s infiltration usually requires user’s participation

As we have mentioned, Searchcompletion.com is promoted by Complitly browser extension, which can either be downloaded manually or can get inside the PC together with other software. Mostly, these programs are freeware that is spread in a bundle with various components.

During freeware installation, you might be offered to install additional programs together with the primary app. However, to do so, you have to opt for Advanced/Custom installation, and that rarely happens. The majority of users rely on Recommended/Quick setup that does not openly disclose about “optional downloads.” Thus, you can avoid browser hijackers[4] if you be careful with software installation:

  • choose “Advanced” settings instead of “Quick”;
  • read EULA,[5] Privacy Policy or other provided documents;
  • unmark ticks from pre-selected browser extensions or third-party programs;
  • do not leave the tick near an agreement to change your default search engine.

Steps to wipe out Searchcompletion.com from the computers

If you are looking for manual Searchcompletion.com removal instructions, they are down below. But before you continue scrolling, please pay attention to the most important aspects of this procedure. First, you have to uninstall suspicious programs from the computer and then check each of the browsers installed on the PC. Finally, you have to reset the browsers.

Additionally, you can remove Searchcompletion.com automatically. We have mentioned at the beginning that this option requires using security software. Choose the tool you trust, update it and scan the device. 

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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