Do you know what Search.searchws.com is?
Search.searchws.com is another browser hijacker developed by Polarity Technologies Ltd., a company that is responsible for releasing a bunch of browser hijackers. Even though this page does look like an ordinary search tool, it is considered a part of malware because it usually appears on users’ browsers without their permission. Specifically speaking, it usually changes both homepages and default search tools on all popular web browsers, including Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome. If you already see the changes too, you should remove Search.searchws.com from all affected browsers as soon as possible because the page you see is not a legitimate search provider even though its appearance suggests that it can be trusted. Browser hijackers are not ordinary programs, so you will need to put some effort into the removal of this hijacker as well. You will find out what you need to do if you read this report till the end.
Search.searchws.com shares similarities with Search.searchlttrn.com, Search.yourpackagesnow.com, and Search.searchm3f.com, so it did not take long for specialists to find out that it is not a reputable search provider either. We have to admit that it looks like a trustworthy search tool, e.g. it contains quick-access buttons that help users to open popular websites with the click of a button, and, on top of that, it contains a search box, i.e. it allows users to perform web searches, which is quite a useful feature; however, as research has clearly shown, it has some drawbacks too. First, it has turned out that not all search results it displays to users after they enter a search query are trustworthy. Some of them are the so-called modified search results. They do not open websites containing information uses are searching for. Instead, they are displayed to users to promote certain websites, so, theoretically, you might be taken anywhere, even to dubious pages promoting untrustworthy software. Polarity Technologies Ltd. will not take responsibility for the entrance of undesirable software on your computer.
Search.searchws.com screenshot
Scroll down for full removal instructions
What else our team of experienced researchers has noticed is that Search.searchws.com collects information about users. It mainly records non-personally identifiable information, for example, Internet Service Provider, geographic location, operating system type, etc., but it seems that it might record all details that can identify users personally if they enter them in its search box too. If you decide not to eliminate Search.searchws.com from your browsers and continue using this search tool, you should, at least, not type anything personal in the search box. Keep in mind that you can erase it at anytime if you do not like a single feature of Search.searchws.com. If you cannot decide what to do, you should know that our security specialists do not recommend using it.
The appearance of Search.searchws.com might be an indication that the browser hijacker has slithered onto your computer. We are sure you have not set this search tool on your browsers willingly. It is more likely that you have installed a software bundle downloaded from filewin.com, malavida.es, or a similar website and allowed malware to enter your system. This might happen once again if you do not do anything to protect your system from bad software. Even the most experienced users might allow malware to enter their computers because it has become very sneaky and often manage to appear on users’ PCs unnoticed.
If your browsers’ settings have been changed, i.e. you see Search.searchws.com open when you launch your browsers, the chances are high that the browser hijacker has entered your system and applied changes. Luckily, there is a way to undo these changes. If you use Internet Explorer, you will fix it by removing the browser hijacker through Control Panel. Unfortunately, the changes applied to Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome could only be undone by resetting them to default settings. If you have never done that before, you should use our instructions – you can find them provided below.
How to remove Search.searchws.com
Internet Explorer
Windows XP
- Click Start.
- Click Control Panel.
- Click Add or Remove Programs.
- Select the browser hijacker and click Remove.
Windows 7/Vista/8/8.1/10
- Tap Win+R.
- Type Control Panel and click OK.
- Click Uninstall a program.
- Select the undesirable application and click Uninstall.
Mozilla Firefox
- Open Mozilla Firefox.
- Access its Help menu (press Alt+H).
- Click Troubleshooting information.
- Click the Refresh Firefox button.
- Confirm the browser reset.
Google Chrome
- Start Google Chrome and press Alt+F.
- Click Settings.
- Click Advanced.
- Click Reset.
- Mark the Delete personal settings checkbox.
- Click Reset.
- Confirm the browser reset.
In non-techie terms:
Search.searchws.com is an untrustworthy search tool that is usually set on users’ web browsers as a new homepage and default search provider without their knowledge. This happens when a browser hijacker successfully infiltrates their computers. If you have become a victim of the browser hijacker too, remove this new search tool set on your browsers as soon as possible because it will bring only problems to you if you use it as your default search tool.