Vimeo Video Downloader Malware

Vimeo Video Downloader

Vimeo Video Downloader is a type of rogue software that inserts itself inside the user’s browser and begins manipulating its search results to show more ads. Vimeo Video Downloader can be described as a browser hijacker and its presence in the browser may potentially result in security weaknesses.

The Vimeo Video Downloader backdoor is well-hidden

Browser hijackers, in general, are a very widespread category of potentially unwanted apps. Unlike ransomware, Trojans, spyware, and other forms of malware and viruses, hijacker apps are not designed with the intention to cause harm to the computers they get installed on and their main purpose is typically advertising-related. However, the creators of such software oftentimes disregard the safety of the end-users, allowing the hijackers they create to spam users’ browsers with all kinds of advertisements and page redirects, including ones that may be unsafe.

Furthermore, many browser hijackers go as far as to replace the default homepage or the search engine of browsers like Firefox, Chrome, or Safari in order to ensure that the stream of intrusive ads, pop-ups, and redirects is as overwhelming as possible. The idea is to get the user to, willingly or not, interact with the ads so that Pay-Per-Click revenue can be earned for the creators of the hijacker. Remuneration models like this are very common nowadays and while they are not illegal or inherently harmful, they oftentimes lead to problems such as the generation of unreliable or outright unsafe ads in the users’ browsers.

The Vimeo Video Downloader Malware

There are lots of different techniques used to spread page-redirecting browser hijackers like the Vimeo Video Downloader malware  but, in most cases, if you make sure to keep away from suspicious and misleading online content, you should be able to avoid landing similar software in the future. One of the most common ways users get the Vimeo Video Downloader Malware added to their browsers is when they install new programs (usually free ones).

Hijacker apps are often bundled with the installer of other programs and if the user forgets to check the Custom settings of the installer, they would never realize that there has been an additional element included in the installation package. This is why it is so important to only get your software from reliable sources and developers and even then to check the Custom setup settings to see if there’s anything potentially unwanted included there.

Another commonly used tactic to spread hijackers that has started being used in recent years is when a certain site (Masterhost.space) asks you whether you’d like to allow it to show notifications in your browser. Since the Allow button in the dialog box is usually highlighted, many users instinctively click on that before even reading what the button’s text reads. Clicking on Allow is what allows the specific site to add a small component to your browser that would then keep spamming you with notifications and inject ads into your search results (among other things).

Spam messages, clickbait banners, and download buttons, too-good-to-be-true offers, and other similar types of sketchy web content are also commonly used tools for hijacker-distribution. The important thing is to avoid them all in order to prevent the installation of hijackers in the future or the exposure of your machine to more hazardous programs such as viruses, spyware, ransomware, or Trojan horse infections.

SUMMARY:

Remove Vimeo Video Downloader Malware

To try and remove Vimeo Video Downloader 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 Vimeo Video Downloader extension (as well as any other unfamiliar ones).
4. Remove Vimeo Video Downloader by clicking on the Trash Bin icon next to its name.
5. Confirm and get rid of Vimeo Video Downloader and any other suspicious items.

If this does not work as described please follow our more detailed Vimeo Video Downloader 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:

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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. 

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.

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.

• 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 Vimeo Video Downloader  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 Vimeo Video Downloader  from Firefox:

Open Firefox, click    ——-> Add-ons —-> Extensions.

Remove Vimeo Video Downloader  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!