Updateinfocity Virus

Browser Hijacker
by Lidia Howler
November 28, 2022

Updateinfocity

Updateinfocity is a browser hijacker that can interrupt the regular user web surfing activity by spamming the screen with hard-to-remove ads. Normally, Updateinfocity may affect the operation of Chrome, Firefox, Edge and other commonly used web browsers by placing modifications to their settings.

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If this browser hijacker has recently started to disturb you, on this page, we will provide you with a free removal guide. The instructions in it will help you to quickly uninstall Updateinfocity and remove the aggressively imposed browser changes. But before you follow the steps, let us first tell you a little more about the browser hijackers and how they can impact your device.

Updateinfocity.com

If you have a browser hijacker like Updateinfocity.com in your system, your default browser will look and will operate in a very different way. Updateinfocity.com will probably make changes in your homepage, your search engine or some of your browsing preferences.

Perhaps you won’t be able to browse the web normally because most of your search queries will immediately get rerouted to pages full of intrusive web ads, pop-up notifications, banners, and promotional messages. And the worst thing is that, most probably, all of these browser modifications will be made without your permission. And to top it all off, when you try to remove them and reset your preferred settings, Updateinfocity will instantly reapply them on your browser and will keep exposing you to different advertisements, irritating pop-ups, and sponsored sites.

SUMMARY:

NameUpdateinfocity
TypeBrowser Hijacker
Detection Tool

Please follow all the steps below in order to remove Updateinfocity!

How to remove Updateinfocity

  1. First, click the Start Menu on your Windows PC.
  2. Type Programs and Settings in the Start Menu, click the first item, and find Updateinfocity in the programs list that would show up.
  3. Select Updateinfocity from the list and click on Uninstall.
  4. Follow the steps in the removal wizard.

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 Updateinfocity.
  • If you find any of the programs suspicious then uninstall them if they turn out to be linked to Updateinfocity.
  • 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 Updateinfocity from Chrome

  1. Click on the three dots in the right upper corner
  2. Go to more tools
  3. Now select extensions
  4. Remove the Updateinfocity extension
  • 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 Updateinfocity 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 Updateinfocity on FF/Edge/etc.

  1. Open the browser and select the menu icon.
  2. From the menu, click on the Add-ons button.
  3. Look for the Updateinfocity extension
  4. Get rid of Updateinfocity by removing it from extensions

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 “Updateinfocity” or another unwanted app, change it to an address that you’d want to be the browser’s new-tab page.

How to Delete Updateinfocity

  1. Open task manager
  2. Look for the Updateinfocity process
  3. Select it and click on End task
  4. Open the file location to delete Updateinfocity
  • 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 “Updateinfocity” 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 accuracy
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    • 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 Updateinfocity

    1. Click on the home button
    2. Search for Startup Apps
    3. Look for Updateinfocity in there
    4. Uninstall Updateinfocity from Startup Apps by turning it off
    • Now you need to carefully search for and uninstall any Updateinfocity racing-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 Updateinfocity 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 Updateinfocity?

    From what we have already said, it is clear that programs like Updateinfocity aren’t something the majority of users want to keep on their computers. In fact, browser hijackers like this one are often considered as potentially unwanted programs. Fortunately, these kinds of programs aren’t as harmful as computer viruses and do not have malicious code like the Trojans and the Ransomware threats. As a matter of fact, browser hijacking programs, such as Updateinfocity and McAfee popup, are pieces of software that are generally utilized to promote sponsored web content and websites through aggressive ads and auto redirects. They are not used for criminal purposes and unlike the aforementioned Trojans, Ransomware and other virus infections, they cannot damage the computer they are installed on.

    Is Updateinfocity dangerous?

    Still, we cannot deny the fact that, while they are operating, browser hijackers can create an enormous annoyance and trouble related to the users’ web surfing. That’s why uninstalling them is a good way to regain control over your web browser and prevent them from spamming your screen and interrupting your regular web browsing with random redirects.
    Ideally, once you completely remove Updateinfocity from your computer, all the modifications made by it will be removed as well and you will be able to reset your browser to its previous state. In the removal guide below you can find the exact steps on how to do this. If the manual removal method is not your thing, the professional Updateinfocity removal tool on this page allows you to properly identify and uninstall all files associated with the browser hijacker in a quick and automatic manner.


    About the author

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    Lidia Howler

    Lidia is a web content creator with years of experience in the cyber-security sector. She helps readers with articles on malware removal and online security. Her strive for simplicity and well-researched information provides users with easy-to-follow It-related tips and step-by-step tutorials.

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