Hi there, I need help in removing a hijacker virus from my Dell laptop. I must have downloaded something by accident and now this Websearch.goodfindings.info has become my main webpage. Also whenever I start a new tab, the page comes up right away. I can’t seem to get rid of it and I really need Google back. I use Firefox if that matters. I have tried to reset the browser a couple times but still no luck. I also ran some anti-virus programs and none of them detected the virus. Any other way to get rid of this virus for good?
If Websearch.goodfindings.info has replaced your start page and changed your default search engine, you should be aware that your computer must be compromised by some kind of adware or browser hijacker infections already. This browser hijacker usually gets installed by coming along with freeware you downloaded from the Internet. And it is able to affect Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and Safari. Once it finds its way to access your computer, tremendous ads may pop up your computer screen and your default homepage and search engine have been changed to Websearch.goodfindings.info. Although the page seems harmless, if you make a search using this Web Search stuff, you will never get any reliable search results because this spam search usually puts sponsored links to the top of its search results to further redirect your search results to malicious sites. It also hammers you with a barrage of popup ads during your browsing sessions. As a result, you will have a hard time surfing the web and your online activities will be interrupted frequently.
Even though Websearch.goodfindings.info looks like Bing, Google or Yahoo search with a striking search engine in the middle of its page, it contains no ability to help a user get search results they want. Instead, once your web browser is hijacked, it could block your Internet access and slow down your PC performance or cause blue screen of death and even random crash down. Additionally, this hijacker is capable of redirecting your browser to other pages that host malware constantly, displaying crazy and annoying pop-up windows, adding unwanted wanted toolbars to mess up your computer. Whenever you surf the web, you may see additional banner or toolbars installed on the top of the browser and you cannot find any way to get rid of them. The hijacker also has the ability to collect and track information about your web browsing habits, such as what websites do you visit, what search queries do you type, how long do you stay on certain websites and then send to cyber criminals for illegal use. So it is advised that computer users should eliminate Websearch.goodfindings.info pop-up as quickly as possible.
It belongs to browser hijacker virus which can totally mess up your browser setting.
It changes your default DNS configuration and blocks you accessing your favorite sites.
It may install some malware in your computer to make bad influence without your consent.
It degenerates your computer performance gradually.
Browser hijacker infection like Websearch.goodfindings.info may enter your system as an add-on for your browser or bundled-up with some free software. Most of time, it can be downloaded from a website you visited, something you clicked on, or a pop-up that you did not request to view. You may not even know when and how you download this browser hijacker which compromises your internet security until you find your computer is fully messed up. A hijack virus is a type of computer virus known for its ability to disrupt your Internet browsing. It can redirect your Internet searches to random sites, disallow you from visiting certain Web sites, and change your Internet home page. In addition, it is able to slow your computer, decrease your available memory, and flood your computer with popup advertisements. When you detect the presence of such malicious hijacker, a complete removal is needed without any hesitation.
1. You keep getting random pop-ups opening in new browser tabs.
2. When clicking on Google search links you get taken to sites that have nothing to do with the subject you searched for.
3. Anti-virus and firewall software won’t start.
4. Internet stops working.
5. Unknown software has been installed without your authorization.
6. You can’t access reputable sites unless you type the URL into the navigation bar
Websearch.goodfindings.info hijacks your browser to redirect your web search results and changes the homepage and browser settings. To completely uninstall it from an infected system, manual removal is the first choice because sometimes antivirus software cannot pick up the exact computer threat timely or remove it permanently. Now most browser hijackers are quite similar to spyware and adware threats and therefore cannot be removed with the help of popular antivirus products. Users can follow the manual guide here to get rid of this browser hijacker completely.
1. Clear all the cookies of your affected browsers.
Since this tricky hijacker virus has the ability to use cookies for tracing and tracking the internet activity of users, it is suggested users delete all the cookies before a complete removal.
Google Chrome:
Click on the “Tools” menu and click the “Clear browsing data” button.
Select “Delete cookies and other site data” to delete all cookies from the list.
Internet Explorer:
Open Internet explorer window
Click the “Tools” button
Point to “safety” and then click “delete browsing history”
Tick the “cookies” box, then click “delete”
Mozilla Firefox:
Click on Tools, then Options, select Privacy
Click “Remove individual cookies”
In the Cookies panel, click on “Show Cookies”
To remove a single cookie click on the entry in the list and click on the “Remove Cookie”
To remove all cookies click on the “Remove All Cookies” button
2. End the malicious process from Task Manager.
Once Websearch.goodfindings.info redirect is installed, computer user may notice that CPU usage randomly jumps to 100 percent. At any time Windows always has many running processes. A process is an individual task that the computer runs. In general, the more processes, the more work the computer has to do and the slower it will run. If your system’s CPU spike is constant and remain at a constant 90-95%, users should check from Task Manager and see if there is a suspicious process occupying the system resources and then end it immediately.
(The name of the virus process can be random.)
Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to quickly bring up Task Manager Window：
3. Show hidden files and folders.
Open Folder Options by clicking the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking Appearance and Personalization, and then clicking Folder Options.
Click the View tab.
Under Advanced settings, click Show hidden files and folders, uncheck Hide protected operating system files (Recommended) and then click OK.
4. Remove all the malicious files related to Websearch.goodfindings.info hijacker manually.
%AppData%Local[random].exe
C:\Documents and Settings\LocalService\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\*.exe
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main StartPage
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
Websearch.goodfindings.info, being categorized as browser hijacker, is known to attack Firefox, Chrome and Internet Explorer, and can function in most versions of Windows, including Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8 or Windows 8.1. It takes control of the corrupted web browser and redirects computer users to irrelevant pages that sell useless goods, promote unwanted services or, most shockingly, spread malware. Besides, the hijacker can install unwanted applications, browser helper objects (add-ons, extensions, toolbars), and third party programs to your computer without your knowledge. Usually this hijacker arrives your computer bundled with other freeware, PDF creators, video recording/streaming, download-managers and etc. Therefore, pay attention to every download and don’t allow any additional add-ons or programs to ruin your PC. The risk of not removing the virus could be system crashes, blue screen of death, and even hardware failure. Computer users are suggested to delete Websearch.goodfindings.info virus once it is found.
Published by & last updated on June 12, 2016 4:09 am
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