Do you know what DownTango is?
If you want a tool to download files and programs from the web, you should forget about DownTango. As a matter of fact, even its creators may have “forgotten” about their “child” since it seems that even its own official website (ww1.downtango.com) is down. Our researchers have found that this application may pose an indirect threat to your system security; therefore, they have categorized it as a potentially unwanted program (PUP). This means that this application cannot be called a big threat or even a malicious program. But it still does not mean that it is all safe to leave it on your computer. It is also important to mention that even if you remove DownTango, your PC will not necessarily be secure. As a matter of fact, this PUP may enter your computer with a number of malicious software installers that can expose you to potentially harmful web content to say the least. Why would you keep any application on your system that may hold the slightest chance to put your virtual security at risk?
One possibility to download this PUP used to be its promotional page at ww1.downtango.com, but this site has been shut down seemingly. So it is quite obvious that no computer user can download it from there anymore. Not that it was too popular either. As a matter of fact, our experience and research show that PUPs are rarely downloaded through their websites. It is much more likely that DownTango is spread in freeware bundles, which is probably the most frequently employed distribution method when it comes to PUPs, adware programs, and browser hijackers. This is why it is quite possible that the bundle in which this PUP enters your system may be packed with several different threats. It is well worth knowing that you can download such bundles in a couple of ways.
DownTango screenshot
Scroll down for full removal instructions
First, it is possible that your computer is infected with adware and that displays a corrupt ad, such as a pop-up, while you are browsing the web and you click on that ad. It is also possible that this happens when you click on modified search results, which is the doing of a browser hijacker indeed. Or, you may visit a suspicious file-sharing website, including torrent and freeware pages, and you click on malicious content there, such as an advertisement. Whichever situation you may encounter, the infection starts with a click on the wrong content. All of these cases may result in several malware threats and PUPs on your computer. This means multiple security issues for you and your operating system. For example, you may infect your system with adware apps and browser hijackers as well on top of DownTango. If you have been annoyed by third-party ads while surfing the web or you noticed seemingly unauthorized browser setting changes, such as your home page, new tab page, and defaults search engine, or a new toolbar, it is quite possible that your computer is under attack on several fronts. If you want to make your PC safe again, we suggest that you start the cleaning with this PUP. Remove DownTango first, and then, run a malware check on your system to find all other possible threats.
According to our researchers, this application also installs a toolbar called Certified-Toolbar (Certified-Toolbar.com) and it also changes the search engine to this URL. This PUP also connects to remote servers, including install.complitly.com and certified-toolbar.com. This application promises you to be able to download files and programs from the web, but we are not convinced that it manages to deliver. PUPs that come in such questionable ways are rarely fully functional, if at all. But even if this software might work, it is surrounded by malware infections and other PUPs; therefore, we suggest that you carry on with your web search and find a proper, reputable tool to download programs from the web. If you are ready to decide, maybe it is time to act and delete DownTango.
What can you think of an application whose uninstaller leaves such a mess on your system as this one? It is quite usual though for PUPs to leave junk files and it clearly shows how unreliable they may be. Therefore, after uninstalling DownTango through Control Panel, you will also need to delete certain windows registry entries and folders manually from your system. Please keep in mind that editing the registry may be risky if you are not an advanced computer user. In order to save your PC from further infections, you should consider employing a reputable malware removal program. But even if you have such a security tool, you should know that it is important to keep all your programs and drivers updated regularly for best protection against cyber criminals.
DownTango Removal from Windows
Windows 8, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10
- Press Win+Q and type in Uninstall a program. Press the Enter key.
- Click on the uninstaller and click Uninstall.
Windows Vista and Windows 7
- Press Win+R and type in control panel. Press OK.
- Access Uninstall a program.
- Click on the uninstaller and click Uninstall.
Windows XP
- Click Start and select Control Panel.
- Pick Add or Remove Programs.
- Click on the uninstaller and click Remove.
Remove Leftovers
- Press Win+R and type in regedit. Press OK.
- Locate and remove these registry keys:
HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ApprovedExtensionsMigration\{8d3ec233-b92d-4187-a506-284127cfba2d}
HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ApprovedExtensionsMigration\{b52d0735-ec19-448a-abde-e01b5bd275d2} - Close the editor.
- Press Win+E.
- Locate and delete these folders:
%PROGRAMFILES(x86)%\Red Sky\DownTango (64-bit)
%PROGRAMFILES%\Red Sky\DownTango
%LOCALAPPDATA%\DownTango
%UserProfile%\Local Settings\Application Data\DownTango
AppData\LocalLow\DownTango4SToolbar - Empty your Recycle Bin.
- Restart your computer.
In non-techie terms:
DownTango is a questionable application that may bring a number of threats to your computer. If you find this potentially unwanted program on board, there is a good chance that you will also find other useless and potentially harmful programs, such as toolbars, browser hijackers, and adware applications. It is also likely that this PUP changes some browser settings. We cannot claim that this software itself is dangerous, but it is quite clear that its presence on your computer is undesirable. If you want to clean your computer of all the threats, you should definitely start with this one. But removing DownTango is only the first step. You need to make sure that no threat remains no matter how slight the possibility is that it can harm you system. If you do not want to go after these infections manually, you should use a reliable anti-malware program.