Remove Wizesearch.com virus (Removal Guide)

Why should I remove Wizesearch.com from my computer?

Wizesearch.com (or Wize Search) is a browser hijacker which has been accused for various computer-related problems. No matter how convincing it looks, it can’t show you “wize” search results because its aim is to reroute users to specific websites and help them increase their visitors’ traffic. In exchange for this activity, the developers of this browser hijacker collect the money. This legitimate-looking and very aesthetic search engine works through several domains. You can reach it thru search.snapdo.com or feed.wizesearch.com, though, when trying to access the latter domain, you will be immediately redirected to search.snapdo.com. A collaboration between Wize Search and Snapdo is rather concerning because no self-respecting site would want to be associated search.snapdo.com. It is a infamous browser hijacker which affiliates with numerous companies and imitates a search engine to generate ads on the infected browsers. This collaboration only raises more questions about the Wize Search itself. When this domain fails to send you to Snapdo, it immediately opens a custom Yahoo search when you hit the search button. This is not a good sign either because the custom search allows various modifications in your search results and may bring up, for example, sponsored links. Unfortunately it was found that this is exactly what Wizesearch does once it enters the computer. By clicking such sponsored search results, you may find yourself on suspicious websites that may be filled with other PUPs or even malware. If you expect your search engine to provide you with relevant information, you can remove Wizesearch and move to the next search engine because this site does not provide any of it. For a system cleanup we recommend using Fortect Intego.

A screenshot of the Wizesearch.com browser hijacker virus

Frankly speaking, Wizesearch.com can be surely put into the category of browser hijackers, because it most of the characteristics it possesses are typical to these infections. First of all, it’s hijack is stealthy. Often, it does not require a straightforward permission from the user to install on the system or the permission is received by deception. Secondly, the engine is ad-based. There are many problems that arise from extensive advertising, such as redirect problems and malware infection, which users often address when evaluating Wizesearch. Finally, the privacy policy of this site is very obscure. The engine does not collect sensitive information but the non-personal data it gathers is enough to generate targeted ads or use for some other online marketing purposes. Be careful, do not use this search engine for your Internet search and hurry with the Wizesearch.com removal if you wish to browse online safely again.

How does this malware hijack your PC?

This browser hijacker used the chance to sneak into your computer when you least expected it: during the installation of a completely legitimate freeware or shareware application or a supposed Adobe Flash update. Users often forget or are completely unaware of the fact that even the legitimate and trustworthy programs bring some hidden components along and may cause hijack of each of their web browsers. Scammers are well aware of this knowledge gap and use it to attach a potentially unwanted program to any of the popular programs. This is exactly how this PUP usually settles on computers. Luckily, you can prevent Wizesearch hijack by simply sparing extra few minutes of your time to install downloaded software using “Advanced” options. This action alone will not stop the potentially unwanted programs from installing. You must manually go through the following installation stages, indicate suspicious attachments and cancel their installation.

Everything you need to know about the Wizesearch.com removal:

Do not let this suspicious ruin your browsing experience, switch to a more reliable search service provider instead and remove Wizesearch.com from your computer immediately. This virus is not difficult to get rid of you can do it both, manually and automatically. If you do not wish to be bothered with a lengthy process of manual virus removal, cut to the chase and use automatic antivirus utility to scan your computer and delete the virus. For more advanced users, we also offer manual Wizesearch.com removal option. There is a detailed guide provided just below this article for you to follow.

Uninstall from Windows

Uninstall from Windows 10/8:

Type Control Panel into the Windows search box and open the result.
Under Programs, select Uninstall a program.

Uninstall from Windows 7/XP:

Click on Windows Start > Control Panel (Windows XP users should click on Add/Remove Programs).
In Control Panel, select Programs > Uninstall a program.

Remove the unwanted program:

In the Programs and Features window, look for any recently installed suspicious entries, select them, and click Uninstall.
If User Account Control appears, click Yes to confirm, then complete the removal.

Delete from macOS

Remove the unwanted application:

From the menu bar, select Go > Applications.
In the Applications folder, look for any suspicious entries, then drag them to Trash (or right-click and pick Move to Trash).

Delete leftover files and folders:

Select Go > Go to Folder.
Enter /Library/Application Support and remove any suspicious folders related to the unwanted program.
Repeat the same check in the /Library/LaunchAgents and /Library/LaunchDaemons folders, deleting any suspicious entries.
Finally, empty the Trash to permanently remove the leftovers.

Reset Internet Explorer

Remove dangerous add-ons:

Open Internet Explorer, click on the Gear icon (IE menu) on the top-right corner of the browser
Pick Manage Add-ons.
You will see a Manage Add-ons window. Here, look for suspicious plugins. Click on these entries and select Disable.

Change your homepage if it was altered:

Open IE and click on the Gear icon.
Select Internet Options.
In the General tab, delete the Home page address and replace it by your preferred one (for example, Google.com).
Click Apply and then select OK.

Delete temporary files:

Press on the Gear icon and select Internet Options.
Under Browsing history, click Delete...
Select relevant fields and press Delete.

Reset Internet Explorer:

Click on Gear icon > Internet options and select Advanced tab.
Select Reset.
In the new window, check Delete personal settings and select Reset.

Remove from Mozilla Firefox (FF)

Remove dangerous extensions:

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 extension and click Remove.

Reset the homepage:

Click three horizontal lines at the top right corner to open the menu.
Choose Settings.
Under Home, set your preferred homepage and new tab settings.

Clear cookies and site data:

Click Menu and pick Settings.
Go to Privacy & Security section.
Scroll down to locate Cookies and Site Data.
Click on Clear Data...
Select Cookies and Site Data and Temporary cached files and pages, then click Clear.

Reset Mozilla Firefox

If clearing the browser as explained above did not help, reset Mozilla Firefox:

Open Mozilla Firefox browser and click the Menu.
Go to Help and then choose Troubleshooting Information.
Under Give Firefox a tune up section, click on Refresh Firefox...
Once the pop-up shows up, confirm the action by pressing on Refresh Firefox.

Remove from Google Chrome

Delete malicious extensions from 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 suspicious extensions related to the unwanted program by clicking Remove.

Clear cache and web data from Chrome:

Click on Menu and pick Settings.
Under Privacy and security, select Clear browsing data.
Select Browsing history, Cookies and other site data, as well as Cached images and files.
Click Clear data.

Change your homepage:

Click menu and choose Settings.
Look for a suspicious site in the On startup section.
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:

Click on Menu and select Settings.
In the Settings, scroll down and click Advanced.
Scroll down and locate Reset and clean up section.
Now click Restore settings to their original defaults.
Confirm with Reset settings.

Delete from Safari

Remove dangerous extensions:

Open Safari, click Safari in the menu at the top-left of the screen, and select Preferences.
Go to the Extensions tab, look for any suspicious entries, and click Uninstall to remove them.

Clear history and website data:

Click Safari in the menu and pick Clear History.
Set Clear to all history and confirm with Clear History.

Reset Safari:

Click Safari in the menu and select Preferences > Advanced.
Enable Show Develop menu in menu bar.
From the menu bar, click Develop and select Empty Caches.

How to remove Wizesearch.com virus

Why should I remove Wizesearch.com from my computer?

How does this malware hijack your PC?