I accidentally clicked on a Facebook link and then I got some kind of malware. It changes my default homepage to Websearch.freesearches.info and will not allow me to conduct a search on Google or any other engines. I use Firefox and now every time I go online, there are tons of ads interrupting my online activities. I ran a quick scan, then a full scan with Malwarebytes, and it identified 2 items, got rid of them (I think). Problem still not fixed, so I re-scanned in safe mode with Malwarebytes. It said I had no bad files. The problem persists. It is very frustrating. Any suggestions?
Websearch.freesearches.info is identified as browser hijacker which is a type of malware program that alters your computer’s browser settings without your permission, so that you will be constantly redirected to Web sites that you had no intention of visiting. Technically speaking, this hijacker is not a virus but it causes an immense problem to the functioning of a computer system as soon as it is downloaded. Users always find it annoying and difficult to be removed because antivirus programs usually have no ability to detect browser hijacking malware. This malware can get into your system and take over your web browsers (including IE, Firefox and Chrome) when you download some freeware to your system or click suspicious and misleading pop-up ads. If you have already found your web browser hijacked by this spam search page, you’d better remove it from the computer quickly.
Websearch.freesearches.info is a fake search page created purposely for marketing, commercial and publicity purposes. It modifies your browser settings without your permission and installs unwanted applications, browser helper objects (add-ons, extensions, toolbars), and third party programs to your computer. Also it is able to add bookmarks for pornographic web sites to your own bookmark collection, leaving your computer more vulnerable for further attacks. After your browser is hijacked, you also find that unwanted pop-up windows come every time you go online. They are faster than you can close them so you will not able to go to your favorite site smoothly. A system infected with Browser Hijacker Virus exhibits frequent errors and browser instability issues as well. Your browser may keep crashing all the time and it takes a long time for you to load up any pages. In a word, one must bear in mind that it becomes very difficult to remove Websearch.freesearches.info hijacker with the help of the commonly available antivirus products, therefore we suggest users get rid of this threat manually instead.
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.freesearches.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.freesearches.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.freesearches.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.freesearches.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.freesearches.info alters the search and error page of a definite browser (such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome or Safari) and redirects the user to its own page. It is defined as a browser hijacker that can interrupt users’ online activities and may bring other computer issues to users. The hijacker will install malicious web browser extensions, change your default DNS configuration and even slow down your computer performance. Even though the WebSearch page seems harmless, you should know that this is a spam search and it can not provide any reliable search results as it markets. The main purpose of Websearch.freesearches.info virus is to promote particular websites and increase their page ranking as well as traffic so you had better remove it at no costs.
Note: If you are not a computer expert and have no idea how to perform the removal, please contact experts from YooCare Online Tech Support for further help.
Published by on April 28, 2015 11:09 am, last updated on April 28, 2015 11:09 am
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