AdBlock Max
AdBlock Max is a type of ad-generating malware known as adware that will constantly display commercial messages on your screen during browsing sessions. Since the ads coming from AdBlock Max may sometimes be misleading or outright hazardous, it’s important to uninstall the adware ASAP.
AdBlock Max is probably not the type of software that you would like to get installed on your computer. Sure, apps like this one tend to get promoted as very useful and helpful tools that can be added to your browser and make it faster, optimize it or add to it some new and useful features but the truth is that AdBlock Max “Malware” is actually what most software security researchers would call an “Adware”. Now, adware is not the worst possible type of unwanted software you could get inside your computer. There are far worse unwanted programs out there – ones like Rootkits, Trojans and, of course, Ransomware. However, you will be amazed at just how widespread the adware category is. There are hundreds of thousands of users worldwide that have issues with nagging banners, pop-ups, pop-under, page-redirects and box messages on browsers like Chrome, Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Opera and oftentimes even on Mac’s Safari. Though the presence of an adware app inside the system is unlikely to directly threaten anything on the computer, it is still undesirable and inadvisable to allow such software to remain in your machine. The sensible thing to do if you have recently noticed that AdBlock Max has gotten installed in your computer and has latched onto your default browser would be to find a way to eliminate the annoying app. This would effectively get rid of its ads and would clean your browser from any changes that the adware may have made to it in order to boost its advertising capabilities.
It is no secret that a big percentage of the advertisements that get generated on the Internet are not really reliable and some of them may even be hazardous. It’s also widely-known that hackers oftentimes tend to make use of misleading online requests and adverts in order to trick more and more users into unknowingly downloading viruses, Spyware, Ransomware and Trojans on their machines. Now, although an adware like AdBlock Max or Blocksly is unlikely to be specifically programmed to show you such compromised or misleading ads, it is also not beyond the realm of possibility that such advertisements indeed get generated on your screen during your browsing in case you have adware on the computer. This brings us back to the importance of removing any ad-generating piece of software that you may find in your system and browser. Keeping your system safe should be a top priority for you, especially if you need the computer for your work or education, which is why we once again mention the guide from this page and the specialized removal program that has been linked to here – use them if you need in order to uninstall the adware.
Achieving a full uninstallation of the adware where you are sure that there’s nothing left of it inside the system may be a bit tricky. The guide below should help you with that but in case the annoyance continues even after you’ve completed the steps, you are advised to use the recommended removal program from the guide for best results.
SUMMARY:
Name | AdBlock Max |
Type | Adware |
Danger Level | Medium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk) |
Symptoms | The typical symptoms include heavy generation of random pop-ups, pop-unders, |
Distribution Method | Spam messages, file bundles, and clickbait ads are the main source of Adware. |
Detection Tool |
Remove AdBlock Max Virus
To try and remove AdBlock Max quickly you can try this:
- Go to your browser’s settings and select More Tools (or Add-ons, depending on your browser).
- Then click on the Extensions tab.
- Look for the AdBlock Max extension (as well as any other unfamiliar ones).
- Remove AdBlock Max by clicking on the Trash Bin icon next to its name.
- Confirm and get rid of AdBlock Max and any other suspicious items.
If this does not work as described please follow our more detailed AdBlock Max removal guide below.
If you have a Windows virus, continue with the guide below.
If you have a Mac virus, please use our How to remove Ads on Mac guide.
If you have an Android virus, please use our Android Malware Removal guide.
If you have an iPhone virus, please use our iPhone Virus Removal guide
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:
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.
- Right-click on the Network Adapter you are using —> Properties —> Internet Protocol Version 4 (ICP/IP), click Properties.
- The DNS line should be set to Obtain DNS server automatically. If it is not, set it yourself.
- 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 AdBlock Max 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 AdBlock Max from Firefox:
Open Firefox, click ——-> Add-ons —-> Extensions.
Remove AdBlock Max 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!
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