Oblongseller Virus

Oblongseller

Oblongseller is a form of unwanted software that infects the browser and introduces unauthorized changes to its settings. Oblongseller can affect the way your search engine works, replace the address of your browser’s homepage, and even cause the sudden generation of aggressive page-redirects.

Oblongseller

Our main goal within the article that you are about to read on this page is to present you with important and useful information on the topic of Oblongseller – a browser hijacker/browser redirect piece of software. This application, though annoying and unwanted, can’t do malicious things like encrypt your data and ask for a ransom payment like Ransomware programs do or corrupt your machine’s system like a lot of Trojans are able to. Instead, it’s primary function is to show different advertising materials on your screen and page-redirect you while you are using your browser. Normally, the browser hijackers achieve that by attaching themselves to Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari or other browsers and replacing different components of the browser with their own custom ones. This could include the search engine tool used as the default searching service of the browser, the homepage web address as well as the address of the new-tab page.

The toolbar may also get affected by the hijacker if this would increase the number of ads that would get shown on your screen. The problem is that even if you deliberately and conscientiously try to avoid clicking on the adverts, you may still accidentally interact with some of them and this, in turn, could expose your system to various hazards, among which may be Trojans, Ransomware encryption-programs, Rootkits, Worms and many more. All things considered, the removal of Oblongseller is the best option you have in such a situation which is why we suggest that you have a look at the following uninstallation guidelines for Oblongseller.

The Oblongseller Virus

The Oblongseller Virus isn’t really something that would directly endanger anything in your computer but it is also not a type of activity that you should tolerate. Aside from the sheer annoyance that the Oblongseller Virus is bound to bring, you should also not forget that not all ads on the Internet are safe to interact with.

The majority of users do not actually realize how such an app may have gotten installed inside their systems due to the rather sneaky distribution techniques that are used to get hijackers installed onto more computers. A very commonly used method of getting software like Oblongseller or Hutters.click onto more and more machines is the use of installation bundles – when this method is employed, the browser hijacker is combined with other software and distributed in a bundle alongside it. The bundle usually includes a main program (normally some free one) and some added components that are typically under an opt-out clause. This means that if you do not want to get the bonus element installed, you’d need to manually opt-out of its installation from within Advanced menu of the setup wizard. Most users forget about this step or simply ignore its importance and that is how they could get a hijacker installed if any of the bonus elements is one such hijacker app. It is, therefore, very important to always check for bundled installs and opt-out of them if you think you may not need or want them becoming part of your system.

SUMMARY:

NameOblongseller
TypeBrowser Hijacker
Danger LevelMedium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk)
SymptomsAs soon as the ads start swarming your browser, you will know there’s a hijacker in it. 
Distribution MethodFile bundles and misleading spam messages are the usual methods.
Detection Tool

Remove Oblongseller Virus

To try and remove Oblongseller quickly you can try this:

  1. Go to your browser’s settings and select More Tools (or Add-ons, depending on your browser).
  2. Then click on the Extensions tab.
  3. Look for the Oblongseller extension (as well as any other unfamiliar ones).
  4. Remove Oblongseller by clicking on the Trash Bin icon next to its name.
  5. Confirm and get rid of Oblongseller and any other suspicious items.

If this does not work as described please follow our more detailed Oblongseller 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


Step1

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).

Step2

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. 

malware-start-taskbar

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. 

    Step3

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

    appwiz

    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:

    msconfig_opt

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

    Step4

    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:

    hosts_opt (1)

    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.
    DNS

    Step5
    • 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).

    browser-hijacker-taskbar-properties

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

    Browser Hijacker Removal Instructions

    ie9-10_512x512  Remove Oblongseller from Internet Explorer:

    Open IE, click  IE GEAR —–> Manage Add-ons.

    pic 3

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

    firefox-512 Remove Oblongseller from Firefox:

    Open Firefoxclick  mozilla menu  ——-> Add-ons —-> Extensions.

    pic 6


    chrome-logo-transparent-backgroundRemove Oblongseller from Chrome:

    Close Chrome. Navigate to:

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

    Rename the Folder to Backup Default

    Rename it to Backup Default. Restart Chrome.

    Step6

    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!


    About the author

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    Brandon Skies

    Brandon is a researcher and content creator in the fields of cyber-security and virtual privacy. Years of experience enable him to provide readers with important information and adequate solutions for the latest software and malware problems.

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