Remove Yahoo Search redirect (CoolNewTheme) (Virus Removal Guide)
Remove Yahoo Search redirect (CoolNewTheme) (Virus Removal Guide)
If your browser homepage or search queries are being redirected through Yahoo Search, then you may have a browser hijacker installed that is causing these redirects.
What is Yahoo Search?
Yahoo Search is a legitimate search engine, however, there are plenty of browser hijackers (oursurfing, istartsurf, istart123) which will redirect the user’s search queries to search.yahoo.com.
Let’s be clear about something, Yahoo Search is not a browser hijacker and is not malicious in any way. However, occasionally, malware will explicitly mess with your web browser settings and Yahoo Search will be displayed. Cybercriminals use Yahoo Search to generate revenue from each search you perform.
When the Yahoo Search browser hijacker is installed on a computer, common symptoms include:
- Your browser’s search queries are redirected through https://search.yahoo.com
- A malicious browser extension or program is installed on your computer
Why is my browser redirected to Yahoo Search?
Your browser is being redirected to Yahoo Search because a malicious program or browser extension is installed on your computer. Often, this type of program is offered through advertisements or bundled with other software, leaving the user puzzled where this software came from.
You should always pay attention when installing software because often, a software installer includes optional installs. Be very careful what you agree to install.
Always opt for the custom installation and deselect anything that is not familiar, especially optional software that you never wanted to download and install in the first place. It goes without saying that you should not install software that you don’t trust.
To remove the Yahoo Search browser hijacker and check your computer for other malicious programs, please use the free malware removal guide below.
Remove Yahoo Search browser hijacker (Virus Removal Guide)
This malware removal guide may appear overwhelming due to the number of steps and numerous programs that are being used. We have only written it this way to provide clear, detailed, and easy to understand instructions that anyone can use to remove malware for free.
Please perform all the steps in the correct order. If you have any questions or doubts at any point, stop and ask for our assistance.
Depending on which operating system is installed on the device you’re seeing the Yahoo Search browser hijacker, follow the removal guide.
- STEP 1: Uninstall malicious programs from Windows
- STEP 2: Use Malwarebytes Free to remove Yahoo Search browser hijacker
- STEP 3: Double-check for malicious programs with HitmanPro
- STEP 4: Remove Yahoo Search redirect from your browser
STEP 1: Uninstall malicious programs from Windows
In this first step, we will check if there are any malicious programs installed on your computer. Sometimes browser hijackers or adware programs can have usable Uninstall entries that can be used to remove these programs.
Open the “Settings” menu.
Click the Start button on the taskbar, then select “Settings” (gear icon).
Click on “Apps”, then on “Apps and Features”.
When the “Windows Settings” window opens, click on “Apps“. By default, it should open “Apps and Features” but if it doesn’t, select it from the list on the left.
Find the malicious program and uninstall it.
The “Apps and Features” screen will be displayed with a list of all the programs installed on your computer. Scroll through the list until you find the malicious program, then click to highlight it, then click the “Uninstall” button.
Look out for any suspicious program that could be behind all the drama – anything you don’t remember downloading or that doesn’t sound like a genuine program.
Here are some known malicious programs: Yahoo Search, Search Power+, APP+, Smash APP+, PDFPoof, BatBitRst, MessengerNow, SearchAd, MyPrintableCoupons, Reading Cursors, ProMediaConverter, PDFOnline-express, See Scenic Elf, Clickware, Easy Speedtest, or WebDiscover.
The malicious program may have a different name on your computer. If you cannot find any malicious programs on your computer, you can continue with the second step from this guide.
Follow the on-screen prompts to uninstall the program.
In the next message box, confirm the uninstall process by clicking on Uninstall, then follow the prompts to uninstall the program.
Make sure to read all of the prompts carefully, because some malicious programs try to sneak things in hoping that you won’t read closely.
STEP 2: Use Malwarebytes Free to remove Yahoo Search browser hijacker
In this second step, we will install Malwarebytes to scan and remove the Yahoo Search browser hijacker from your computer. Malwarebytes Free is one of the most popular and most used anti-malware software for Windows, and for good reasons. It is able to destroy many types of malware that other software tends to miss, without costing you absolutely nothing. When it comes to cleaning up an infected device, Malwarebytes has always been free and we recommend it as an essential tool in the fight against malware.
It is important to note that Malwarebytes Free will run alongside antivirus software without conflicts.
Download Malwarebytes Free.
You can download Malwarebytes by clicking the link below.
MALWAREBYTES DOWNLOAD LINK
(The above link will open a new page from where you can download Malwarebytes)Double-click on the Malwarebytes setup file.
When Malwarebytes has finished downloading, double-click on the MBSetup file to install Malwarebytes on your computer. In most cases, downloaded files are saved to the Downloads folder.
You may be presented with an User Account Control pop-up asking if you want to allow Malwarebytes to make changes to your device. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the Malwarebytes installation.
Follow the on-screen prompts to install Malwarebytes.
When the Malwarebytes installation begins, you will see the Malwarebytes setup wizard which will guide you through the installation process. The Malwarebytes installer will first ask you on what type of computer are you installing this program, click either Personal Computer or Work Computer.
On the next screen, click “Install” to install Malwarebytes on your computer.
When your Malwarebytes installation completes, the program opens to the Welcome to Malwarebytes screen. Click the “Get started” button.
Select “Use Malwarebytes Free”.
After installing Malwarebytes, you’ll be prompted to select between the Free and the Premium version. The Malwarebytes Premium edition includes preventative tools like real-time scanning and ransomware protection, however, we will use the Free version to clean up the computer.
Click on “Use Malwarebytes Free“.
Click on “Scan”.
To scan your computer with Malwarebytes, click on the “Scan” button. Malwarebytes will automatically update the antivirus database and start scanning your computer for malware.
Wait for the Malwarebytes scan to complete.
Malwarebytes will scan your computer for adware and other malicious programs. This process can take a few minutes, so we suggest you do something else and periodically check on the status of the scan to see when it is finished.
Click on “Quarantine”.
When the scan has completed, you will be presented with a screen showing the malware infections that Malwarebytes has detected. To remove the malicious programs that Malwarebytes has found, click on the “Quarantine” button.
Restart computer.
Malwarebytes will now remove all the malicious files and registry keys that it has found. To complete the malware removal process, Malwarebytes may ask you to restart your computer.
When the malware removal process is complete, you can close Malwarebytes and continue with the rest of the instructions.
STEP 3: Double-check for malicious programs with HitmanPro
In this third step, we will use HitmanPro to scan your computer for other malicious programs. HitmanPro is a second opinion scanner that takes a unique cloud-based approach to malware scanning. HitmanPro scans the behavior of active files and also files in locations where malware normally resides for suspicious activity. If it finds a suspicious file that’s not already known, HitmanPro sends it to their clouds to be scanned by two of the best antivirus engines today, which are Bitdefender and Kaspersky.
Although HitmanPro is shareware and costs $24.95 for 1 year on 1 PC, there is actually no limit in scanning. The limitation only kicks in when there is a need to remove or quarantine detected malware by HitmanPro on your system and by then, you can activate the one time 30-days trial to enable the cleanup.
Download HitmanPro.
You can download HitmanPro by clicking the link below.
HITMANPRO DOWNLOAD LINK
(The above link will open a new web page from where you can download HitmanPro)Install HitmanPro.
When HitmanPro has finished downloading, double-click on “hitmanpro.exe” (for 32-bit versions of Windows) or “hitmanpro_x64.exe” (for 64-bit versions of Windows) to install this program on your PC. In most cases, downloaded files are saved to the Downloads folder.
You may be presented with an User Account Control pop-up asking if you want to allow HitmanPro to make changes to your device. If this happens, you should click “Yes” to continue with the installation.
Follow the on-screen prompts.
When HitmanPro starts you will be presented with the start screen as shown below. Click on the “Next” button to perform a system scan.
Wait for the HitmanPro scan to complete.
HitmanPro will now begin to scan your computer for malicious programs. This process will take a few minutes.
Click on “Next”.
When HitmanPro has finished the scan, it will display a list of all the malware that the program has found. Click on the “Next” button to remove the malicious programs.
Click on “Activate free license”.
Click on the “Activate free license” button to begin the free 30 days trial and remove all the malicious files from your PC.
When the process is complete, you can close HitmanPro and continue with the rest of the instructions.
STEP 4: Remove Yahoo Search redirect from your browser
In this final step, if your browser is still redirected to Yahoo Search, we will need to reset the web browser settings to their original defaults. This step should be performed only if your issues have not been solved by the previous steps.
Remove Yahoo Search browser hijacker from Google Chrome
To remove the Yahoo Search redirect from Chrome we will reset the browser settings to its default. Resetting your browser settings will reset the unwanted changes caused by installing other programs. However, your saved bookmarks and passwords will not be cleared or changed.
Click the menu icon, then click on “Settings”.
In the top right corner, click on Chrome’s main menu button, represented by three vertical dots. When the drop-down menu appears, click on “Settings“.
Click “Advanced”.
Chrome’s “Settings” should now be displayed in a new tab or window, depending on your configuration. Next, scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the “Advanced” link.
Click “Reset settings to their original defaults”.
Scroll down until the “Reset and clean up” section is visible, as shown in the example below. Click on “Reset settings to their original defaults“.
Click “Reset Settings”.
A confirmation dialog should now be displayed, detailing the components that will be restored to their default state should you continue on with the reset process. To complete the restoration process, click on the “Reset Settings” button.
Your computer should now be free of the Yahoo Search browser hijacker. If your current antivirus allowed this malicious program on your computer, you may want to consider purchasing Malwarebytes Premium to protect against these types of threats in the future.
Danial Zahoor
Professional Ethical Hacker and Cybersecurity Researcher with a proven track record in dismantling online threats. Successfully neutralized 4 scammer networks, thwarted 13 phishing schemes, and disrupted 4 kidnapper networks. Committed to ensuring online safety and security, I leverage my expertise to protect individuals and organizations from digital threats. Passionate about cybersecurity education and empowering others to stay safe online.
