Better Search Virus

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Better Search

Better Search is a browser-redirecting add-on for Chrome, Edge, and Firefox that is seen as unwanted because it automatically page-redirects the user to different sites without permission. Better Search also alters some of the browser’s settings which could potentially result in system vulnerabilities.

Maybe the browser hijackers like Better Search are not as dangerous as Trojans and can’t block access to your data as Ransomware cryptoviruses. There is no doubt that these apps are still rather unwanted and if you have already had BetterSearch installed on your computer, you probably know what we mean by that.

The Better Search Virus

Better Search virus is a new and potentially dangerous website-redirect nuisance that is characteristic with webpage redirects. Better Search virus is what’s known as a browser hijacker and is not considered as dangerous as other forms of malware. However, the affected users should not hesitate to remove it.

Endless ad generation inside the browser, frequent and obstructive redirects to different promotional and marketing pages that always seek to sell you stuff as well as replacements of the search engine service, the new-tab page, and the homepage addresses that your browser had as its default ones. Also, it should be mentioned that Better Search, just like most other hijackers, is not a browser-specific app, meaning that you can get it on Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera, and maybe even on Safari. All in all, even if the browser hijackers aren’t exactly viruses, they are still most definitely software that most users would find highly intrusive, irritating, and unpleasant to have on their computers. Luckily, in case you need help with the uninstallation of Better Search, you can find it inside the guide for removing Better Search that we have provided our readers with within the current write-up. We’ve also added a removal tool for automatic assistance in case you need extra help since the manual instructions from the guide may not be for everyone. What we mean by that is some users may find the guide a bit too advanced and may prefer an automatic way of removing the hijacker instead of manually trying to uninstall its components from their computer and browser. Whatever the method that you choose, just remember that it really is better to eliminate the hijacker as soon as possible in order to stop its invasive activities in your browser as this is the only guaranteed way you could do that. 

Make sure not to “touch” any of the ads

Users who have been browsing the Internet for some time and have experience with their browser should know that not all requests, colorful ads, and random pop-ups that show on their screen while on the Internet are safe and reliable. In fact, many of the online commercial messages that may get shown inside your browsers may actually be hazardous and may even lead to the infection of your machine with some nasty Trojan or maybe a cryptovirus of the infamous Ransomware family. Of course, such ads are rare, however, the problem with browser hijackers like Hdvideosnet, iStart Search Bar is that if you have one such software component in your browser, the number of online ads you see would be quite significant and the chances of getting ads that are unsafe would drastically increase. Therefore, what we recommend is that you keep your distance from the commercial messages that Better Search shows you and use our guide to rid your browser of the annoying application so that it bothers you no more. This really is the best thing you can do in such a situation so we advise you to waste n time and uninstall the hijacker at once!

SUMMARY:

*Source of claim SH can remove it.

How to remove Better Search

If you are looking for a way to remove Better Search as quickly as possible, so you can start using your browser normally again, here is a brief suggestion on what to do:

• Start with launching the hijacked browser and clicking on its main menu.
• From the list of options in the menu, select More Tools (in some browsers it could be also Add-ons).
• Next, search for a tab or an option called Extensions and open it.
• Search carefully the extensions that have been installed in the browser for Better Search or other unfamiliar extensions that you don’t normally use but seem to be disturbing your browsing experience.
• Remove Better Search by clicking on the Trash Bin icon//Remove button next to its name.
• Do the same for any other potentially unwanted or suspicious-looking extensions.

After you are done with that, use the browser for a while to see how it operates. If you still are facing disturbance caused by Better Search, please use the more detailed Better Search removal guide below.

First, in your browser, click on the Bookmark icon to save this page with Better Search removal instructions for later reference.

Next, restart the computer in Safe Mode (use the instructions from the provided link for guidance).

After the computer restarts in Safe Mode, come back to this guide and complete the steps below.

WARNING! READ CAREFULLY BEFORE PROCEEDING!

*Source of claim SH can remove it.

Go to the Start menu and type Task Manager in the search field. Open the result and click on the Processes Tab (In Windows 8 and 10 it is called “Details“). Look at the processes there and if you notice that a particular process is named after Better Search or has an unusual symbols and characters in its name, or it uses a lot of CPU or Memory power without you running anything resource-intensive, right-click on it and choose the Open File Location option:

Next, with the help of the scanner below, check all the files in that location for dangerous code or any hijacker-related traces. For your convenience, you can use the drag and drop method:

Each file will be scanned with up to 64 antivirus programs to ensure maximum accuracy

This scanner is free and will always remain free for our website's users.

This file is not matched with any known malware in the database. You can either do a full real-time scan of the file or skip it to upload a new file. Doing a full scan with 64 antivirus programs can take up to 3-4 minutes per file.

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After the scan finishes, make sure you end the process in question if any of its files gets flagged as a danger. Also, it is equally important to delete the flagged files from the computer.

Another important thing that you need to do is to check your computer for any bogus applications that might have installed Better Search inside your computer through software bundling. For that, from the Start Menu navigate to Control Panel>>>Programs>>>Uninstall a Program.

To save time, you can filter the programs by date of installation and search for apps that you have installed recently, as well as apps that look bogus or potentially unwanted. If needed, research the programs that look questionable online, in order to gather information about them from reputable security sites and software developers. If, based on the information you collect, you decide that a particular program on your computer is related to the hijacker infection, don’t hesitate to Uninstall it.

Next, back to the Start Menu, type msconfig in the search bar and hit enter. 

In the new window that opens, click on the Startup tab and search for Startup Items that could be related to Better Search and its hijacker activity on your system:

Disable the entries that you believe are linked to the hijacker by removing their checkmark from the respective checkbox. When you are done, click OK to apply the changes.

*Source of claim SH can remove it.

Sometimes, a browser hijacker like Better Search may gain access to various settings and make changes to them without asking for permission. Such is the case with the DNS settings which may be changed without a notice.

To revoke any such potential alternations, open Network Connections from the Start Menu and follow these instructions:

1. Highlight the Network Adapter that is in use and right-click on it. Then, open  Properties
2. In the new window, highlight Internet Protocol Version 4 (ICP/IP), and click  the Properties button below.
3. Make sure that Obtain DNS server address automatically is the selected option in the new window and click on Advanced
4. In the Advanced window, select the DNS tab. Check for rogue DSN in the field (as explained on the image) and if you detect anything suspicious, remove it. Click  OK to apply the changes when you are done.

Some users complain that no matter how hard they try to remove Better Search, the hijacker always finds a way to get back in their browser. This is because, many people forget to remove the traces of the intrusive software from all of their browsing apps. Once you finish the instructions below, however, you will greatly reduce the chance of Better Search of reappearing after a system reboot.

Start with a right-click on the shortcut icon of the default browser. Then select —> Properties.

NOTE: You will notice that Google Chrome is used in the example images that follow, but know that the same instructions could be applied for Firefox and IE (or Edge).

In Properties go straight to the Shortcut tab and, where it is written Target, make sure that you remove everything after .exe.

  Remove Better Search from Internet Explorer:

If your default browser is IE, click the gear icon at the top   —–> Manage Add-ons.

In the Add-ons list, Disable anything that looks disturbing.

After that, click the gear icon   once again —–> Internet Options.

If the homepage URL has been changed by Better Search, remove the sponsored address and add an address of your choice, then click > Apply.

 Remove Better Search from Firefox:

In case that Firefox is the default browser on your computer, click    ——-> Add-ons, and then select > Extensions. Similarly to what you did in IE, Disable and Remove any Better Search-related extensions from the list to stop the hijacker from messing with your browsing expereince.

Remove Better Search from Chrome:

Next, quit Google Chrome (or the browser that you want to clear from Better Search) and manually navigate to:

 C:/Users/!!!!USER NAME!!!!/AppData/Local/Google/Chrome/User Data. 

You should see a folder called “Default” there. Select it and change its name to Backup Default. Save the new name and restart the browser.

In the last step,  copy the following line and paste it in the Start menu search bar:

notepad %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/hosts

Open the file that is found in the results and scroll its text until you find Localhost.

Then, check for suspicious-looking IPs and if you detect anything like the IPs on the image below, please leave us a comment with a copy of those addresses. A member of our team will take a look at them and reply.

If there is nothing disturbing in your Hosts file, simply close it and proceed to the instructions that follow.

Click on the Start menu button and type Regedit in the search bar. Next, press Enter and this should open the Registry Editor. Then, use the CTRL and F key combination to open a Find box where you can write the name of the browser hijacker that you want to remove. Search the registry for entries matching that name and delete anything that is found with a right-click on them.

In case that nothing is found in this way, use the left panel to manually navigate to these directories:

• HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—–Random Directory.
• HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—Microsoft—-Windows—CurrentVersion—Run– Random
• HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—Microsoft—Internet Explorer—-Main—- Random

In each of them, search for randomly-named files and folders. Pay attention to anything that has been added recently, or near the time the hijacker started to disturb you.

If you need to delete something, but you are not sure, please use the recommended professional removal tool or our free online virus scanner. This will save you time and efforts, as well as eliminate the risk of deleting something legitimate by mistake.