Trfcbooost ads (fake) - Chrome, Firefox, IE, Edge

What is Trfcbooost ads?

Trfcbooost redirects users to various scam sites that can cause serious consequences for users

Trfcbooost is a malicious domain that initiates redirects to fraudulent sites

Trfcbooost is a result of a PUP (potentially unwanted program) hiding in your system. It initiates redirects to shady websites that promote various online scams. If you interact with these pages, you risk infecting your device with more PUAs and malware. Also, these pages could be using social engineering techniques to lure out users' personal information, which could lead to financial losses or even identity theft.^[1]

If you experience browser redirects often, an extension is added to your browser that performs them. Browser plugins are capable of doing a lot of things if you add them without looking into them. People often get their browsers hijacked unwillingly because they do not follow security experts' guidelines for staying safe online. Users rush and do not read the prompts that provide all the information about the application's actions on their computers.

Social engineering methods still make fraudsters money

Scary messages saying that you are infected with a dangerous virus or that your information is exposed and out in the open for everyone to see are still commonly used by scammers to get what they want. This type of scheme is called scareware^[2] and is meant to make users act without thinking and based on emotions.

Below you can see one page that Trfcbooost opened. It states that the browser is damaged by Trojans^[3] and users need to take action quickly to prevent them from affecting their social media accounts and other applications. These types of schemes are aimed at people who do not know very much about online threats.

You should never believe pages that open randomly, especially if they encourage you to take immediate steps that include providing your information, clicking on other links, or downloading software. One good example we previously wrote about is the “IP address & personal information might be exposed” scam.

Trfcbooost can lead to virus infections and monetary losses

Among pages that use scare tactics, you may encounter websites that say you have won a prize or money. Most often, they say that you just need to complete one simple task to be able to claim the prize. The authors of these often use well-known company names like Google and Apple to make them look more legitimate.

You should know that giant tech companies do not just pick random visitors and shower them with gifts. One famous page that does this is the 2018 Annual Visitor Survey scam. It asks users to fill out a short “Browser Opinion Survey” for a chance to win $20,000. It also asks to provide personal information like a phone number. This can be very dangerous and cause serious consequences.

Check the extensions' list in your browser

You should try to locate the extension responsible for the changes in your browser settings and move on to the next step, which is clearing your browsers. The best option for this is getting a maintenance tool like FortectIntego that can do this automatically. This software can get rid of all the cookies^[4] that collect data while you browse and fix any remaining damage.

Google Chrome

• Open Google Chrome, click on the Menu (three vertical dots at the top-right corner) and select More tools > Extensions.
• In the newly opened window, you will see all the installed extensions. Uninstall all the suspicious plugins that might be related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove.

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 on Uninstall at the bottom.

MS Edge (Chromium)

• Open Edge and click select Settings > Extensions.
• Delete unwanted extensions by clicking Remove.

Mozilla Firefox

• Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click on the Menu (three horizontal lines at the top-right of the window).
• Select Add-ons.
• In here, select the unwanted plugin and click Remove.

Safari

• Click Safari > Preferences…
• In the new window, pick Extensions.
• Select the unwanted extension and select Uninstall.

Internet Explorer:

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.

PUPs are silently working in the background of your machine

The removal of the extension may not have been effective if it is not the only thing affecting your system. You could still be experiencing redirects, increased amount of commercial content, scammy ads popping up, etc. This is a sign that you have a PUA hiding in your system without your knowledge. The application can keep changing the settings of your browser until you completely remove it from your device. Identifying it might be difficult if you have never done it before.

The program could be disguised as antivirus, video, or image editing software because they are most often installed from freeware^[5] distribution sites. People think that they are installing a handy program and do not think much about it. The owners of such platforms include additional programs in the installers without disclosing it on their page and hope that most people will not notice. Unfortunately, that is what happens most of the time. People rush through the installation process and skip through the steps.

If you want to avoid this happening in the future, you should always choose the “Custom” or “Advanced” installation method, read the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. The most important part is to inspect the file list and uncheck the boxes next to any unrelated programs that you do not need. We suggest using SpyHunter 5Combo Cleaner or Malwarebytes professional security tools that will scan your machine, eliminate it, and prevent such infections in the future by giving you a warning before a PUP can make any changes. If you prefer manual removal because you know what to do, we have instructions for Windows and Mac users:

Windows 10/8:

1. Enter Control Panel into Windows search box and hit Enter or click on the search result.
2. Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.
3. From the list, find the entry of the suspicious program.
4. Right-click on the application and select Uninstall.
5. If User Account Control shows up, click Yes.
6. Wait till the uninstallation process is complete and click OK.

Windows 7/XP:

1. Click on Windows Start > Control Panel located on the right pane (if you are a Windows XP user, click on Add/Remove Programs).
2. In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.
3. Pick the unwanted application by clicking on it once.
4. At the top, click Uninstall/Change.
5. In the confirmation prompt, pick Yes.
6. Click OK once the removal process is finished.

Mac:

1. From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
2. In the Applications folder, look for all related entries.
3. Click on the app and drag it to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash)

To fully remove an unwanted app, you need to access Application Support, LaunchAgents, and LaunchDaemons folders and delete relevant files:

1. Select Go > Go to Folder.
2. Enter /Library/Application Support and click Go or press Enter.
3. In the Application Support folder, look for any dubious entries and then delete them.
4. Now enter /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders the same way and terminate all the related .plist files.