Shop ads: what it is and how to remove it
Shop-Up is a legitimate program, which displays commercial pop-up ads that are filled with various notifications about discounts, coupons and similar deals. No matter that this program is not a 'virus' or 'malware', it may infiltrate your computer without any permission asked.
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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Start the stepsShop ads: summary
| Detection names | No Microsoft detection name is known |
|---|---|
| Distribution | Not recorded in the old report |
| Damage | Not recorded in the old report |
| Name | Shop |
| Type | Adware extension |
| Symptoms | An unknown program in Installed apps |
| 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 4 more facts
| Evidence | One write-up by a security site; details still limited |
|---|---|
| Program | Shop |
| First seen | 12 November 2013 |
| Facts checked | 7 October 2026 |
From our report of Nov 2013 · not reviewed since
What Shop is
Shop-Up is a legitimate program, which displays commercial pop-up ads that are filled with various notifications about discounts, coupons and similar deals.
No matter that this program is not a 'virus' or 'malware', it may infiltrate your computer without any permission asked. Once it is installed on the system, it may become a really annoying application that interrupts your browsing sessions and shows undesired ads every time you start searching the web.
Beware that these ads are mostly filled with links that seek to make people visit related websites, so there is no guarantee that you will save the money with a help of Shop-Up.
Is Shop ads dangerous?
From our report of Nov 2013 · not reviewed since
HOW CAN I INSTALL SHOP-UP?
Shop-Up is mostly distributed in a bundle with freeware and shareware.
You can be tricked into installing it when downloading freeware and shareware on your computer without paying much attention to its installation process. If you want to avoid this application, try to keep an eye on freeware's installation process, find the check mark, which agrees to download Shop-Up, and uncheck it.
If you missed this step. soon you will notice that, no matter which browser you use, you see continuous ads that say: 'Ads by Shop-Up'. As we have already said, you should be very careful with them because they may redirect you to unsafe website. For eliminating these messages, you should follow this guide:
How to remove Shop ads
How to remove the Shop extension
Do the browser steps in every browser and profile on the PC, then check Windows for the program that installed the extension.
Step 1: Remove extensions you did not add
Shop 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: Uninstall Shop
Open Settings > Apps > Installed apps in Windows 11, or Settings > Apps > Apps & features in Windows 10. Sort the list by install date and find Shop, 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 3: 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 4: 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
Choose a proper web browser and improve your safety with a VPN tool
Online spying has got momentum in recent years and people are getting more and more interested in how to protect their privacy online.
One of the basic means to add a layer of security - choose the most private and secure web browser. Although web browsers can't grant full privacy protection and security, some of them are much better at sandboxing, HTTPS upgrading, active content blocking, tracking blocking, phishing protection, and similar privacy-oriented features.
However, if you want true anonymity, we suggest you employ a powerful VPN - it can encrypt all the traffic that comes and goes out of your computer, preventing tracking completely.
Lost your files? Use data recovery software
While some files located on any computer are replaceable or useless, others can be extremely valuable.
Family photos, work documents, school projects - these are types of files that we don't want to lose. Unfortunately, there are many ways how unexpected data loss can occur:
- power cuts
- Blue Screen of Death errors
- hardware failures
- crypto-malware attack
- even accidental deletion
To ensure that all the files remain intact, you should prepare regular data backups. You can choose cloud-based or physical copies you could restore from later in case of a disaster. If your backups were lost as well or you never bothered to prepare any, can be your only hope to retrieve your invaluable files.
From our report of Nov 2013 · not reviewed since
HOW TO REMOVE 'ADS BY SHOP-UP'?
If you see continuous ads from Shop-Up and you want to get rid of them, you should firstly scan the system with updated anti-spyware.
After that, follow this guide to remove this program completely:
- Uninstall Shop-up via Add/Remove Programs list. For that, use these instructions:
- Click Start -> Control Panel -> Programs (or Add/Remove Programs) -> Uninstall a Program.
- Here, look for Shop-Up and select 'Uninstall/Change'.
- Click OK to save the changes.
- Finally, remove Shop-Up add-on from your browsers (Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer):
- Open Internet Explorer, go 'Tools' -> "Manage Add-ons' -> 'Toolbars and Extensions'.
- Here, look for Shop-Up and similar entries, and click 'uninstall'.
- Open Mozilla Firefox, go 'Tools' -> 'Add-ons' -> 'Extensions'.
- Find Shop-Up and similar entries, and click 'Uninstall'.
- Click the Chrome menu button on the Google Chrome browser, select Tools -> Extensions.
- Here, look Shop-Up extension and get rid of it by clicking on the Recycle Bin.
Questions about Shop ads
Is Shop a virus?
Most programs that appear the way Shop did are not viruses in the strict sense. They are potentially unwanted programs:
- real software that arrives bundled with other downloads and then shows offers
- changes browser settings
- starts with Windows
Some are harmless, some are annoying and a few carry adware. What makes it worth removing is that you did not choose it.
Uninstall it from Installed apps and check the startup list and the browsers for anything added the same day. If it refuses to uninstall or returns after a restart, treat it as more serious and run a Microsoft Defender offline scan.
Shop 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 Shop 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.
Did Shop collect my data?
Adware typically collects what it needs to choose ads:
- the sites you visit
- search terms
- approximate location
- browser and system details
Extensions with permission to read and change data on all websites can technically see everything on those pages, including forms. That is a privacy problem rather than proof of theft.
If you typed card details or passwords while it was active, changing the most important passwords is a reasonable precaution. Clearing cookies after removal ends the tracking sessions it may have started.
I let a "support technician" from an ad connect to my PC. What should I do?
Act quickly but calmly. Disconnect the PC from the internet first, so the connection ends. Uninstall the remote access tool they asked you to install and check Installed apps for anything else added during the call.
Run a Microsoft Defender full scan and offline scan. From another device, change your e-mail and banking passwords and sign out of all sessions.
If you paid by card, bank transfer or gift card, contact your bank or the card issuer immediately, and report the scam to the police. Do not answer if they call back.
Can an adware pop-up infect my PC just by appearing?
No. A pop-up, a notification or a new tab is only a web page or a message. It cannot run programs on Windows by itself, provided the browser and Windows are up to date. Infection needs a step from you:
- running a downloaded file
- installing an extension
- giving a stranger remote access
That is why scam pages work so hard to make you click. Close such pages with the tab's X or by closing the browser, not with buttons inside the page, which may start a download.
Why is my browser so slow since the ads started?
Each page now does extra work. An adware extension reads the page, decides where to put ads, loads them from ad servers and reports your visit, and that happens on every tab. Ad-supported programs add their own background activity.
Removing the extension or program usually makes the browser fast again at once. If it stays slow, open the browser's own task manager with Shift+Esc in Chrome or Edge and look for extensions using a lot of memory or processor time.
My scan found nothing, but the ads continue. Why?
Because the source may not be a file a scanner looks for. Browser notifications are a permission stored in the browser, and many adware extensions are not flagged because they come from an official store.
Some ad-supported programs are only reported if you enable detection of potentially unwanted apps. So a clean scan does not mean the job is done. Check each browser's notification permissions and extension list by hand, and turn on Potentially unwanted app blocking in Windows Security before scanning again.
What is Shop?
Shop-Up is a legitimate program, which displays commercial pop-up ads that are filled with various notifications about discounts, coupons and similar deals. No matter that this program is not a 'virus' or 'malware', it may infiltrate your computer without any permission asked.
The summary table at the top of this guide lists the type, the detection names, the symptoms and the damage of Shop. Reading it first helps you decide whether your computer shows the same signs. The removal plan below it works in order, from the safest step to the more thorough ones.
Will Fortect remove Shop?
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 Shop, 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
- Google Chrome Help: Use notifications to get alerts (no longer online) (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)
- Microsoft Learn: How Microsoft names malware (read October 7, 2026)