Abrts.pro “Virus” Ads Removal (Chrome/Firefox/IE)

This page aims to help you remove Abrts.pro “Virus”. Our removal instructions work for Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer, as well as every version of Windows.

Some people may often experience disturbances of their browsing, caused by a special type of programs known as browser hijackers. If you landed on this page because some strange ad-generating activity and search engine or homepage changes have taken place in your browser (Chrome, Firefox, Explorer, etc.), then you should know that you are most probably dealing with a program of this type. Abrts.pro “Virus” is a freshly released browser hijacker, and in the next lines, we are going to tell you more about it. We are also going to provide you with a free removal guide on how to effectively remove the strange changes and uninstall this program without professional help. Just make sure you carefully read what follows and let us know if you face any difficulties.

Why may it not be a good idea to keep Abrts.pro “Virus” on your PC?

The programs that have the ability to change the browser settings are usually called browser hijackers and they belong to the potentially unwanted program category (PUP). Abrts.pro “Virus” is a program of this type and it can initiate some quite irritating and unwanted changes in the way your browser operates. For instance, it may start to redirect you to various unknown sites every time you try to search something in your browser, or it may open up a new tab or new window without your approval. This potentially unwanted program may also promote offers by displaying various ads, pop-ups, and banners or may replace your search engine with another one in order to modify your search results. Such activity is generally not virus-like and has nothing in common with real malicious threats (Trojans, Ransomware, Spyware, etc.) however, it may cause you some inconvenience and irritation and may force you to visit different third-party web pages, some of which may be a bit risky. The variety of sites and products, advertised by Abrts.pro “Virus”, may eventually expose you to some types of suspicious content (and even some well-camouflaged virus transmitters), that’s why, from a security point of view, it is not recommended to interact with the browser hijacker and its ads. 

The creators of this browser hijacker, however, may not be that concerned about the security and the privacy of the users as they are mainly focused on the profits, which Abrts.pro “Virus” may earn for them thanks to an aggressive online advertising method known as pay-per-click. If the users do not uninstall the program from their system and click on its popping suggestions, however, they may risk encountering very tedious redirects to external web pages that may contain some viruses or even worse malware threats such as Trojans or Ransomware. For this reason, we usually recommend our readers to get rid of the browser hijacker by performing a system scan with appropriate security software or remove it manually by using the instructions in the removal guide below.

Another problem with this browser hijacker is related to your privacy and you should carefully read the EULA, provided by the program developers if you want to be aware of what exactly Abrts.pro “Virus” is capable of. You may be surprised to find out that browser hijackers commonly collect personal information from online users in a number of ways. For example, they may keep track of the latest browsing queries, search history, and other minor but important details of your preferences. The information they collect from you is typically used to display targeted ads for you. After installing this potentially unwanted program, you may not only receive ads in the search results but also as pop-up ads and banners on the webpages you visit. To avoid these annoying consequences, you may want to permanently uninstall Abrts.pro “Virus”.

Abrts.pro “Virus” Removal

If you are a Windows user, continue with the guide below.

If you are a Mac user, please use our How to remove Ads on Mac guide.

If you are an Android user, please use our Android Malware Removal guide.

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Some of the steps will likely require you to exit the page. Bookmark it for later reference.

Reboot in Safe Mode (use this guide if you don’t know how to do it).

WARNING! READ CAREFULLY BEFORE PROCEEDING!

Press CTRL + SHIFT + ESC at the same time and go to the Processes Tab (the “Details” Tab on Win 8 and 10). Try to determine which processes are dangerous. 

Right click on each of them and select Open File Location. Then scan the files with our free online virus scanner:

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After you open their folder, end the processes that are infected, then delete their folders. 

Note: If you are sure something is part of the infection – delete it, even if the scanner doesn’t flag it. No anti-virus program can detect all infections. 

Hold together the Start Key and R. Type appwiz.cpl –> OK.

You are now in the Control Panel. Look for suspicious entries. Uninstall it/them.

Type msconfig in the search field and hit enter. A window will pop-up:

Startup —> Uncheck entries that have “Unknown” as Manufacturer or otherwise look suspicious.

Hold the Start Key and R –  copy + paste the following and click OK:

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

A new file will open. If you are hacked, there will be a bunch of other IPs connected to you at the bottom. Look at the image below:

If there are suspicious IPs below “Localhost” – write to us in the comments.

Open the start menu and search for Network Connections (On Windows 10 you just write it after clicking the Windows button), press enter.

1. Right-click on the Network Adapter you are using —> Properties —> Internet Protocol Version 4 (ICP/IP), click  Properties.
2. The DNS line should be set to Obtain DNS server automatically. If it is not, set it yourself.
3. Click on Advanced —> the DNS tab. Remove everything here (if there is something) —> OK.

• After you complete this step, the threat will be gone from your browsers. Finish the next step as well or it may reappear on a system reboot.

Right click on the browser’s shortcut —> Properties.

NOTE: We are showing Google Chrome, but you can do this for Firefox and IE (or Edge).

Properties —–> Shortcut. In Target, remove everything after .exe.

  Remove Abrts.pro “Virus” from Internet Explorer:

Open IE, click   —–> Manage Add-ons.

Find the threat —> Disable. Go to  —–> Internet Options —> change the URL to whatever you use (if hijacked) —> Apply.

 Remove Abrts.pro “Virus” from Firefox:

Open Firefox, click    ——-> Add-ons —-> Extensions.

Find the adware/malware —> Remove.
Remove Abrts.pro “Virus” from Chrome:

Close Chrome. Navigate to:

 C:/Users/!!!!USER NAME!!!!/AppData/Local/Google/Chrome/User Data. There is a Folder called “Default” inside:

Rename it to Backup Default. Restart Chrome.

Type Regedit in the windows search field and press Enter.

Inside, press CTRL and F together and type the threat’s Name. Right click and delete any entries you find with a similar name. If they don’t show up this way, go manually to these directories and delete/uninstall them:

• HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—–Random Directory. It could be any one of them – ask us if you can’t discern which ones are malicious.
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—Microsoft—-Windows—CurrentVersion—Run– Random
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—Microsoft—Internet Explorer—-Main—- Random

If the guide doesn’t help, download the anti-virus program we recommended or try our free online virus scanner. Also, you can always ask us in the comments for help!

How did I install Abrts.pro “Virus”?

Most of the potentially unwanted programs move in a package with other free programs and thus, enter the target systems with the user’s permission, but without their knowledge (in most cases). The user is trapped if they do not pay attention to the statements in the installation settings of the software. Typically, under Default and Standard Settings, there are several statements that indicate that the user agrees to install “Recommended Programs” along with the basic software. To deny this installation, the user must select Custom or Advanced settings and then remove the bookmarks to install these suggested programs. We also advise you not to download suspicious apps from third-party web pages, whether it’s a stand-alone program, a new browser tab, or a browser extension. Boring, ad-supported programs can be easily installed, while removing them can be a very difficult task. If you already installed the already mentioned browser hijacker, follow these instructions in the guide below to get rid of it.

SUMMARY:

Name	Abrts.pro
Type	Browser Hijacker
Danger Level	Medium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk)
Symptoms	Strange ad-generating activity and search engine or homepage changes may take place in your browser.
Distribution Method	Spam messages, ads, pop-ups, free download links, automatic installers.
Detection Tool	parasite may reinstall itself multiple times if you don't delete its core files. We recommend downloading SpyHunter to scan for malicious programs. This may save you hours and cut down your time to about 15 minutes. Download SpyHunter Anti-Malware More information on SpyHunter, steps to uninstall, EULA, Threat Assessment Criteria, and Privacy Policy. If SpyHunter detects a malware, you will have to purchase a license to remove it.

Keep in mind, SpyHunter’s malware detection tool is free. To remove the infection, you’ll need to purchase the full version. More information about SpyHunter and steps to uninstall.