*Source of claim SH can remove it.
Poolkarella
Poolkarella is a potentially harmful program that disguises itself as a browser add-on, but in reality, it is a browser hijacker that can take over your browser settings without your permission. Poolkarella is notorious for promoting various websites and is often categorized as junkware.
Poolkarella can easily find its way into any browser that is compatible with the Windows operating system. It targets the most popular browsers such as Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Opera, but it can affect other browsers as well. This is because hijackers like Poolkarella use various techniques to infiltrate your browser, such as bundling themselves with other programs or disguising themselves as a legitimate software update.
However, not all hijackers are the same. Some, like Poolkarella, Mintnav, Wigglewurm can install spyware and gather information about your browsing history and online habits. This can lead to cyberattacks, including session hijacking and DNS hijacking, which can put your personal and financial information at risk.
The Poolkarella Virus
Poolkarella virus may not seem harmful at first, but it can leave your computer more susceptible to attacks from Ransomware, Spyware, or Trojans. The Poolkarella virus introduces changes to your browser and system, creating vulnerabilities that can be easily exploited by malware.
The uncontrolled ads it spams your screen with may even originate from sites used for the distribution of Ransomware cryptoviruses, making it important to take action against Poolkarella virus.
Removing the hijacker can be tricky, especially for less experienced users. But fret not, as we have the perfect solution for you. Below this article, you will find step-by-step instructions to ensure the complete removal of Poolkarella virus. Additionally, we have provided a removal tool that will help you detect and eliminate any potential leftovers.
SUMMARY:
Name | Poolkarella |
Type | Browser Hijacker |
Danger Level | Medium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk) |
Detection Tool |
*Source of claim SH can remove it.
Please follow all the steps below in order to remove Poolkarella!
How to remove Poolkarella
- First, click the Start Menu on your Windows PC.
- Type Programs and Settings in the Start Menu, click the first item, and find Poolkarella in the programs list that would show up.
- Select Poolkarella from the list and click on Uninstall.
- Follow the steps in the removal wizard.
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.
Read more…
What we suggest you do first is, check the list of programs that are presently installed on the infected device and uninstall any rogue software that you find there:
- From the Start Menu, navigate to Control Panel ->>> Programs and Features ->>> Uninstall a Program.
- Next, carefully search for unfamiliar programs or programs that have been installed recently and could be related to Poolkarella.
- If you find any of the programs suspicious then uninstall them if they turn out to be linked to Poolkarella.
- If a notification appears on your screen when you try to uninstall a specific questionable program prompting you to just alter it or repair it, make sure you choose NO and complete the steps from the removal wizard.
Remove Poolkarella from Chrome
- Click on the three dots in the right upper corner
- Go to more tools
- Now select extensions
- Remove the Poolkarella extension
Read more…
- Once you open Chrome, click on the three-dots icon to open the browser’s menu, go to More Tools/ More Options, and then to Extensions.
- Again, find the items on that page that could be linked to Poolkarella and/or that might be causing problems in the browser and delete them.
- Afterwards, go to this folder: Computer > C: > Users > *Your User Account* > App Data > Local > Google > Chrome > User Data. In there, you will find a folder named Default – you should change its name to Backup Default and restart the PC.
- Note that the App Data folder is normally hidden so you’d have to first make the hidden files and folders on your PC visible before you can access it.
How to get rid of Poolkarella on FF/Edge/etc.
- Open the browser and select the menu icon.
- From the menu, click on the Add-ons button.
- Look for the Poolkarella extension
- Get rid of Poolkarella by removing it from extensions
Read more…
If using Firefox:
- Open Firefox
- Select the three parallel lines menu and go to Add-ons.
- Find the unwanted add-on and delete it from the browser – if there is more than one unwanted extension, remove all of them.
- Go to the browser menu again, select Options, and then click on Home from the sidebar to the left.
- Check the current addresses for the browser’s homepage and new-tab page and change them if they are currently set to address(es) you don’t know or trust.
If using MS Edge/IE:
- Start Edge
- Select the browser menu and go to Extensions.
- Find and uninstall any Edge extensions that look undesirable and unwanted.
- Select Settings from the browser menu and click on Appearance.
- Check the new-tab page address of the browser and if it has been modified by “Poolkarella” or another unwanted app, change it to an address that you’d want to be the browser’s new-tab page.
How to Delete Poolkarella
- Open task manager
- Look for the Poolkarella process
- Select it and click on End task
- Open the file location to delete Poolkarella
Read more…
- Access the Task Manager by pressing together the Ctrl + Alt + Del keys and then selecting Task Manager.
- Open Processes and there try to find a process with the name of the unwanted software. If you find it, select it with the right button of the mouse and click on the Open File Location option.
- If you don’t see a “Poolkarella” process in the Task Manager, look for another suspicious process with an unusual name. It is likely that the unwanted process would be using lots of RAM and CPU so pay attention to the number of resources each process is using.
- Tip: If you think you have singled out the unwanted process but are not sure, it’s always a good idea to search for information about it on the Internet – this should give you a general idea if the process is a legitimate one from a regular program or from your OS or if it is indeed likely linked to the adware.
- If you find another suspicious process, open its File Location too.
- Once in the File Location folder for the suspicious process, start testing all of the files that are stored there by dragging them to our free online scanner available below.
- Each file will be scanned with up to 64 antivirus programs to ensure maximum accuracyThis 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.Drag and Drop File Here To ScanAnalyzing 0 sEach file will be scanned with up to 64 antivirus programs to ensure maximum accuracyThis scanner is based on VirusTotal's API. By submitting data to it, you agree to their Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, and to the sharing of your sample submission with the security community. Please do not submit files with personal information if you do not want them to be shared.
- If the scanner finds malware in any of the files, return to the Processes tab in the Task Manager, select the suspected process, and then select the End Process option to quit it.
- Go back to the folder where the files of that process are located and delete all of the files that you are allowed to delete. If all files get deleted normally, exit the folder and delete that folder too. If one or more of the files showed an error message when you tried to delete them, leave them for now and return to try to delete them again once you’ve completed the rest of the guide.
How to Uninstall Poolkarella
- Click on the home button
- Search for Startup Apps
- Look for Poolkarella in there
- Uninstall Poolkarella from Startup Apps by turning it off
Read more…
- Now you need to carefully search for and uninstall any Poolkarella-related entries from the Registry. The easiest way to do this is to open the Registry Editor app (type Regedit in the windows search field and press Enter) and then open a Find dialog (CTRL+F key combination) where you have to type the name of the threat.
- Perform a search by clicking on the Find Next button and delete any detected results. Do this as many times as needed until no more results are found.
- After that, to ensure that there are no remaining entries lined to Poolkarella in the Registry, go manually to the following directories and delete them:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Random Directory.
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Run/Random
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Internet Explorer/Main/Random
What is Poolkarella?
Browser hijackers like Poolkarella can be extremely disruptive and invasive. They can change your homepage, default search engine, and even redirect you to malicious websites that can harm your computer. Additionally, hijackers can generate ad revenue by forcing you to view ads and sponsored content that you didn’t intend to see.
Prevention is key when it comes to browser hijackers. One way to keep your device free from browser hijackers is to never click on suspicious links, including those in emails, text messages, or pop-up notifications. You should also keep your operating system and browser patches up to date, as browser hijackers can take advantage of holes in operating systems and browsers.
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