Searchencrypt.navigateto.net virus: what it is and how to remove it

Open the browser's search engine settings, choose the search engine you want and set it as default, then remove searchencrypt.navigateto.net from the list.

If the option is greyed out or a note says it is controlled by an extension, remove that extension first and try again. If the browser says it is managed by your organization, a policy holds the setting, and the policy steps in this guide apply.

When the change will not stick, reset the browser: it restores the default search engine and start page and turns off extensions, but keeps bookmarks and saved passwords. Then check Installed apps for a program that may put searchencrypt.navigateto.net back.

Yes. Every search typed into the address bar goes to searchencrypt.navigateto.net first, which is how it earns money. It can log the query, the time and an identifier for your browser, and some hijackers also collect the pages you visit through their extension.

The privacy policy of such sites usually allows sharing that data with partners. Once the hijacker is removed and your own search engine is set again, new searches no longer reach it. Searches already sent cannot be taken back, so avoid entering sensitive information until the clean-up is finished, and clear cookies afterwards.

Because the browser's default search engine was changed to it. Searchencrypt.navigateto.net virus did that through an extension, a program or a browser policy, and as long as that source remains, the setting points to searchencrypt.navigateto.net.

The page then passes your query to a real search provider, so the results look almost normal, with extra sponsored links on top. Changing the search engine back on its own does not last, because the source resets it. Remove the extension or program first, then the policies if any, then set your own search engine.

We would not. Every query you type is logged by its operators and shared with their advertising partners, and the sponsored links at the top are chosen for payment, not relevance. Results that look like a download page or a support site may lead to scams.

The page will not damage Windows by itself, but there is no benefit in keeping it: the results come from another search engine anyway. Remove Searchencrypt.navigateto.net virus and use that search engine directly, by typing its address or choosing it in the browser settings.

We saw it in Chrome, Edge and Firefox. That does not mean the other browsers on your PC are safe: hijacker installers usually change every browser they find, and browser sync can carry an extension to other computers signed in to the same account.

Check the search engine, home page, new tab, extensions and policies in each browser you have, including ones you rarely open. Chrome and Edge profiles count separately, so switch to each profile and check it as well before you call the job done.

It knows what you searched for while it was your search engine, when, from which IP address and with which browser, and usually which results you opened. Tracking cookies let it connect those searches into a profile. It does not see your saved passwords or files.

After removing Searchencrypt.navigateto.net virus, delete the cookies and site data for searchencrypt.navigateto.net so the profile cannot be continued, and remove it from the browser's list of saved search engines. Signing out of important sites and back in also replaces session cookies.

Not really. An ad blocker can hide some of the sponsored results on searchencrypt.navigateto.net, but it does not change your search engine back or remove the extension that set it. Your searches would still pass through the hijacker's servers and be logged.

Some ad blockers include tracking filters that block parts of the redirect chain, which can break searches altogether. Remove Searchencrypt.navigateto.net virus with the plan above; an ad blocker is a reasonable extra afterwards, from the official store only and from a developer with a long track record.

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.

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 Searchencrypt.navigateto.net virus can come back after a reset if one of those remains. Do the reset after removing the program and policies, not instead of it.

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 Searchencrypt.navigateto.net virus, 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.