*Source of claim SH can remove it.
Viewer Extension
Viewer Extension is a type of undesirable software that doesn’t damage the system directly, but could still represent an indirect security risk. Viewer Extension is mainly known for taking over some of the browser’s settings, and causing aggressive ads, pop-ups, and page-redirects to appear in the browser.
Browser hijackers like Viewer Extension ride the thin line between being a malware and a category of legitimate, albeit mostly useless, apps. There are various types of hijackers (“Conigure”, “Options”) out there – some are simply software components that change something such as its homepage or the default search engine. Other more complex ones may get installed as a separate program on the computer, make various changes in the system, and even offer some semi-useful function within the browser. There are even browser hijackers that are simply sites that use underhanded techniques, such as fake captchas, to gain presence in the users’ Chrome, Firefox, Edge, or another browser, thus generating more visits and gaining a better ranking in the various search engines. The thing that puts all those different apps, sites, and software components in the same category is their primary goal – to make money through different types of online advertisement techniques. This goal doesn’t make a typical hijacker like Viewer Extension a direct threat to one’s system, but the way it is achieved is certainly a reason for safety concerns.
What makes Viewer Extension dangerous?
At first sight, all that Viewer Extension does is advertise some sites on your screen while you are browsing and also make some unwanted and unauthorized changes in the browser. While this can be quite annoying, a lot of people may be able to ignore it and continue using their PC and browser mostly in the same way as before. However, though the ads, the page-redirects, and the browser changes don’t directly harm the computer, they can sometimes be turned into gateways for more serious threats (Trojans, Spyware, Ransomware, etc.) to invade the PC. The main issue related to Viewer Extension and the way apps like it tend to operate stems from the fact that there’s usually little to no control of the content promoted by these browser-hijacking apps and sites.
If you are not being careful and click on ads spammed by Viewer Extension , you could eventually find yourself on some phishing page or page filled with downloadable malware disguised as free harmless apps and programs. Obviously, in most cases, you’d be able to tell that something’s not right with such pages and leave them, but in some rare occasions, the cybercriminals have gone the extra mile to make their harmful pages as convincing as possible, and this is when you may get tricked into exposing your virtual privacy and safety to whatever threat is hidden there. Needless to say, the only advisable course of action if a hijacker is on your computer is to immediately delete the app and all of its related files and settings in order to save yourself from potential encounters with phishing sites, or sites used for distribution of Trojans, Spyware, Ransomware, Rootkits, and other such threats.
To help you with the process of cleaning your computer from the presence of Viewer Extension , we’ve provided a detailed hijacker-removal guide that you can read right below. In it, you will find a specialized anti-malware tool that can help you find and eliminate every last piece of data which may be related to Viewer Extension , thus ensuring that the hijacker doesn’t automatically return on its own the next time you restart your PC.
SUMMARY:
| Name | Viewer Extension |
| Type | Browser Hijacker |
| Detection Tool | We tested that SpyHunter successfully removes parasite*, and we recommend downloading it. Manual removal may take hours, it can harm your system if you re not careful, and parasite may reinstall itself at the end if you don't delete its core files. |
*Source of claim SH can remove it.
Remove Viewer Extension Virus
A time-saving trick that may assist you in swiftly removing Viewer Extension without having to go through all the steps in the guide below is described below:
- Open the hijacked browser and click on the main menu button (typically found top right).
- Following that, locate and select the More Tools/Add-ons option.
- After that, locate and click the Extensions tab/sub-menu.
- Once the Extensions page has been opened, take a look at each extension that has been installed carefully.
- If you discover an extension that is linked to Viewer Extension , is suspicious, or appears to be hijacking your search results, uninstall it.
- To delete an extension from your browser, simply click on the relevant remove/trash bin button.
- Restart the browser to see if your changes made a difference.
In case the issue with Viewer Extension has been handled, you may skip the lengthy procedures below. If, however, the hijacker is still displaying signs of its presence and irritating you with nagging advertisements, redirects, and browser changes, carefully repeat the instructions in the following guide:
You will be required to restart your computer and browser several times after completing the instructions in the next steps. Thus, if you want to complete this article, we recommend bookmarking it before proceeding, so that you can quickly return to it and continue where you left off before the restart.
Next, we will suggest you to reboot your computer in Safe Mode by utilizing the instructions from this link. Safe Mode will execute just the system’s most critical functions and apps, making it easier to discover and remove the browser hijacker.
WARNING! READ CAREFULLY BEFORE PROCEEDING!
Read more details in the first ad on this page, EULA, Privacy Policy, and full terms for Free Remover.
*Source of claim SH can remove it.
Press CTRL + SHIFT + ESC keyboard keys together. Following this step, the screen should display the Windows Task Manager.
Select the Processes tab (the “Details” Tab on Win 8 and 10) and check for processes with unusual names, excessive CPU or RAM usage, that appear suspicious to you, or that you believe are directly related to Viewer Extension and its activity.
Right-click on each suspicious process and select Open File Location. After that, you should be able to see the files associated with that process.
Scan such files for danger with a powerful online virus scanner. We have provided a free and powerful scanner below for your convenience:
After the scan completes, end the process whose files were recognized as harmful by right-clicking on it in the Processes tab and selecting the End Process option. Additionally, do not forget to delete the dangerous files or directories from the file location.
Utilize the Windows and R key combinations to open a Run window. Then, in the Run window, type appwiz.cpl and click OK.
On the screen, a new Control Panel window should open. There, you can go through a list of all the programs installed on your computer. Search for newly installed applications that may be connected to the installation of Viewer Extension on your computer. If you discover a fraudulent application that appears to be associated with the browser hijacker, uninstall it immediately to prevent the hijacker from reappearing upon system reboot.
Once complete, exit the apps list and navigate to the Start menu’s windows search field (in Windows 10 it is the magnifying glass icon bottom left next to the Windows Start menu).
To open System Configurations, type msconfig in the search field and press Enter. Search the Startup tab in System Configurations for startup items linked to Viewer Extension and remove their checkmark. This will prevent the hijacker from starting its processes as soon as the system starts.
Read more details in the first ad on this page, EULA, Privacy Policy, and full terms for Free Remover.
Open a new Run window (by pressing the Windows and R keys simultaneously) and copy/paste the following line into it:
notepad %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/hosts
Following that, click OK, which should open a notepad file named Hosts. Locate Localhost in the text and check if any suspicious-looking IP addresses have been added at the bottom.
If you discover IPs that should not be in your “Localhost” column, please do not delete them immediately. Make a copy of the dubious addresses and contact us in the comments section, so we can advise you on your next steps.
If there is nothing unusual in the file, close it and launch Network Connections by searching for it in the search field (On Windows 10 you just write it in the search bar).
- Right-click on the Network Adapter that you are currently using and then select Properties.
- Scroll to Internet Protocol Version 4 (ICP/IP) in the Properties box, highlight it with your pointer, and click the Properties button underneath.
- Check that Obtain DNS server address automatically is selected, and then click the Advanced option.
- Select the DNS tab in the new window.
- Remove everything from the DNS server addresses section and click OK to save your changes.
Type Regedit in the Windows search field and open the Registry Editor app. You will now be inside the Registry Editor, where you should press CTRL and F simultaneously and type the browser hijacker’s name into the pop-up Find window. Click on Find Next to start a registry search for Viewer Extension -related items; if any are identified, right-click and remove them. It is possible that you will need to rerun the search numerous times until no additional entries are identified.
After that, manually navigate to each of the directories indicated below and delete/uninstall anything suspicious that you find in there:
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—–Random Directory.
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—Microsoft—-Windows—CurrentVersion—Run– Random
- HKEY_CURRENT_USER—-Software—Microsoft—Internet Explorer—-Main—- Random
Attention! If performed incorrectly, deletions and modifications to the Registry might result in system and application issues. For this reason, it is recommended that you use a professional removal program to avoid inadvertent system corruption.
The instructions in this step will walk you through the process of removing Viewer Extension and its associated components and alterations from your browsers. It is critical to note that if you use more than one browser, you should apply the guidelines below to all of them to prevent the browser hijacker from re-appearing.
NOTE: We’re demonstrating with Google Chrome, but the same principle should apply to Firefox and Internet Explorer (or Edge).
Right-click the shortcut icon for the browser and select Properties from the pop-up menu.
Following that, in the newly opened Properties window, click on Shortcut.
Navigate to the Target section and check if anything was added after the .exe (refer to the image below) and click OK.
When Internet Explorer is launched, click on the gear icon upper right corner and then select Manage Add-ons.
Disable any Viewer Extension -related add-ons/extensions in the Add-ons list. It could be one or several, so proceed with caution.
Following that, click the gear icon again and navigate to —–> Internet Options. If your homepage’s URL has been modified without your consent, erase it and replace it with the desired address. Prior to closing, click Apply.
If you’re using Firefox, from the main menu icon, navigate to ——> Extensions —-> Add-ons.
Following that, on the Extensions page, search for and delete any entries that are potentially unwanted or belong to Viewer Extension .
Prior to cleaning Google Chrome, exit the browser. After that, manually navigate to the following location on your machine:
C:/Users/!!!!USER NAME!!!!/AppData/Local/Google/Chrome/User Data.
Right-click on the Default folder and rename it Backup Default. Restart Chrome after that.
If the removal guide here is ineffective, or you don’t know which files you need to delete, you can download and run a full system scan with the anti-virus program promoted on this page, or you can use our free online virus scanner to totally eliminate Viewer Extension . Additionally, we appreciate any comments or questions you may have in the box below.
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