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

How to remove Yardood.com virus

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

Lucia Danes · Virus researcher

Yardood is still bothering people during their browsing sessions

If you experience trouble browsing online, you may be infected with Yardood virus. In particular, the hijacker's attack manifests through the changes in browser and general deterioration of the browsing performance. This might include long web page loading time, freezing or crashing browser, random redirects, etc. 

Due to such behavior, Yardood is deemed a potentially unwanted program (PUP)[1] and a browser hijacker. The virus spreads bundled with freeware[2] and targets popular web browsers. Users can suspect that their computers have been infected with this virus when they one day open their browsers to an unfamiliar Yardood.com homepage. 

Besides, this browser hijacker has other versions that allow targeting specific countries [3]: us.yardood.com, fr.yardood.com, and uk.yardood.com. This suspicious search engine is supposed to provide faster and better search services.

Developers claim that this tool helps find relevant information quickly, provides access to the popular and trending websites which are supposed to satisfy users’ needs. However, these beautiful promises do not meet reality. Instead of giving access to the trending and relevant websites, browser hijacker encourages visiting sponsored third-party sites. Unfortunately, Yardood.com hijacker provides modified search results [4] and includes commercial content in it.

It becomes hard to find necessary information using affected web browser; besides, you might accidentally enter to the potentially hazardous Internet site. Redirect problem is quite concerning because after one visit to the infected website you might catch serious computer infection or lose your personal information.

After infiltration, Yardood.com malware alters web browser’s settings and makes its domain as the new homepage and default search engine. Also, it appends arguments to the various shortcuts, might modify Windows Registry [5], and install additional applications that protect it from being uninstalled.

All these modifications prevent users from resetting browser’s settings, so users can remove Yardood from their browser only when they remove hijacker from the computer. However, if this suspicious search engine seems useful and you are not going to get rid of it immediately, you should know that this tool is capable of tracking information about you.

It’s not our imagination that hijacker is spying on your browsing activity; it’s written in their Privacy Policy. The hijacker is interested in your visited website, search queries, IP address, time spent online and on particular sites, type of browser, language, etc, as can be seen in the extract below:

When you use Yardood’s services, the server will automatically record certain information, including URL, IP address, type of browser, language used, and the date and time of visit, etc., with the sole purpose being to provide you with better services.

All this information is supposed to provide better services; however, you can never be sure what other purposes the developers might have. For this reason, we recommend not to delay the Yardood removal for too long. You can perform a quick system clean-up with the help of FortectIntego or similar reputable antivirus programs.

Yardood.com redirect issue 

How to install new programs safely?

Developers use deceptive software marketing technique for browser hijacker’s distribution. This method is called bundling and allows adding PUP as an optional application to the regular software package. So, when computer users install new programs, they can expect to find out about hijack on their computers.

The hijack of Yardood might occur when users install new software using “Recommended”, “Quick” or “Standard” settings. These settings do not openly disclose about additional applications and install them by default. For this reason, it’s important to opt for “Advanced” or “Custom” installation mode which allows monitoring and adjusting this process. When you carefully complete each installation step, you might encounter the list of additional programs and deselect them.

Besides, you might also see pre-selected statement claiming that you agree to make yardood.com, us.yardood.com, fr.yardood.com or uk.yardood.com as your homepage. If you rush through the installation, you might skip this feature and let browser hijacker inside the computer.

Process of the Yardood.com removal explained:

Browser hijacker is more annoying than dangerous computer infection, for this reason, you can remove Yardood virus manually or automatically. Manual elimination requires more time and effort because you have to find and remove all virus-related components.

Hijacker might have installed “helper objects” and many additional applications to your PC and web browsers, so you have to remove them all.

It might be quite a hard task for not so experienced computer users, so we recommend opting for automatic Yardood.com removal. This method requires installing and updating reliable anti-malware program and running a full system scan. Within several minutes, this computer infection will be gone for good, and you will be able to reset your web browsers.

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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