Click on screenshot to zoom
Danger level 6
Type: Browser Hijackers
Common infection symptoms:
  • Hijacks homepage
  • Changes default search engine

Search.searchws.com

If you are wondering why your browser's default settings were altered without any authorization, you should know that it could be an indication that a browser hijacker is active on your operating system. One such application goes by the name of Search.searchws.com. If you ever encounter it, be sure to avoid it at all costs as it exhibits extremely invasive functionality. Just like any other suspicious program of this classification, the one in question can make browsing the web an annoying and frustrating experience by initiating undesirable alterations to your browser's default settings. Unfortunately, there is more to this hijacker than you might think. Upon further analysis, it has been discovered that this devious piece of software could act dangerously. To find out more about its suspicious functionality, be sure to read our report. Finally, to help you delete Search.searchws.com, we include a comprehensive removal guide that you can find below.

During the extensive analysis of Search.searchws.com, our researchers have noticed that this browser hijacker affects major web browsers such as Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, and Mozilla Firefox. Due to such broad compatibility, a large number of users could be affected by this dubious application; thus, being aware of its existence could help you keep your operating safe and secure. The first indication that Search.searchws.com is up and running on your personal computer is a sudden change of your browser's default settings. The main two alterations are of your homepage and search engine. They are triggered in a somewhat conventional manner; upon intrusion, this hijacker makes modifications to a few files and registry values that are directly related to your browser's default settings. Due to all of that, surfing the web will become a much more bothersome task. That is so because for as long as this hijacker will be active on your personal computer you will start all of your online sessions on a questionable third-party site, whether you like that or not. Furthermore, you will experience the same thing in regards to your search engine as you will be forced to use it for every single online query. What causes even more annoyance is the fact that the newly appointed search provider can present you with a large number of sponsored results, which might have nothing to do with your online query. It is critical to delete Search.searchws.com as that is the only way to regain your browser's default settings. To do that quickly and easily, make use instructions that we present below.

It is critical to note that Search.searchws.com could prove to be just as dangerous as it is annoying. As it turns out, the newly appointed search engine could present you not only with worthless results but with ones hosting redirect links. If you happen to click on such a result, you could find yourself on suspicious and even malicious websites. There is a chance that you could come across hoax online stores, which are set up by cyber crooks for a simple reason - to steal your credit card data and other sensitive information. Furthermore, you could end up on a webpage that runs something known as an arbitrary code execution exploit, which malware developers favor because it can initiate a remote installation of some devious or malicious program without requiring your consent. Thus, just entering a site that runs the exploit in question could have disastrous outcomes. As you can see this hijacker cannot be trusted and should not be tolerated as it might prove to be a major virtual threat. Be sure to execute a complete removal of Search.searchws.com as soon as it is found up and running on your operating system.

To remove Search.searchws.com once and for all, make use of our detailed instructions. As soon as you are done with the manual removal, be sure to recheck your entire operating system for potential leftovers. Such analysis is imperative because just a few leftovers of Search.searchws.com could act deviously. For example, some traces might be just enough for the dubious alteration to remain in place. In other instances, leftovers might trigger a restoration procedure of Search.searchws.com without your knowledge. If you find manual analysis a bit too complicated, make sure to scan your computer with a reliable antimalware tool because it can identify and delete any virtual security threat automatically.

How to remove Search.searchws.com from your PC

Internet Explorer

  1. Click the Windows button.
  2. Type regedit into the search field and tap Enter.
  3. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main.
  4. Right-click a registry value entitled Start Page and select Modify.
  5. Replace the unwanted URL with a new one and then click OK.
  6. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchScopes.
  7. Select a registry entry called {177EFC6B-E6C5-40BB-8CD2-A9312B4122DF} and tap Delete on your keyboard.
  8. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ Software Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall.
  9. Select a registry entry called {28e56cfb-e30e-4f66-85d8-339885b726b8} and tap Delete on your keyboard.
  10. Open your File Explorer.
  11. Navigate to C:\Users\[your username]\AppData\Roaming.
  12. Select a folder called {28e56cfb-e30e-4f66-85d8-339885b726b8} and tap Delete on your keyboard.
  13. Close your File Explorer.
  14. Right-click your Recycle Bin and select Empty Recycle Bin.

Mozilla Firefox

  1. Open your File Explorer.
  2. Navigate to C:\Users\[your username]\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[unique Mozilla ID].
  3. Select a file called user_pref and then tap Delete on your keyboard.
  4. Close your File Explorer.
  5. Right-click your Recycle Bin and select Empty Recycle Bin.

Google Chrome

  1. Open your File Explorer.
  2. Navigate to C:\Users\[your username]\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default.
  3. Select and remove files called Preferences, Secure Preferences and Web Data.
  4. Close your File Explorer.
  5. Right-click your Recycle Bin and select Empty Recycle Bin.
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