Having SearchSwapper.com in your browsers as your home page, new tab page, and default search engine can mean two things: you installed this potentially unwanted program (PUP) knowingly or you have no clue how it showed up in your browsers. We believe that most users would go for the latter option. The simple reason is that this browser plugin is in fact a totally useless tool that no one would really want to install, and also, that it is mostly distributed in a questionable way. This plugin offers you a choice of three major search engines to do your web searches through, but, unfortunately, it is also possible that this tool manipulates the results. This is why you might be exposed to unreliable third-party web content through this PUP. We recommend that you remove SearchSwapper.com if you want to keep your computer clean; however, it is quite likely that this browser plugin is the least of your worries right now.
There are two official sites where you can install this plugin directly. First, the promotional page at SearchSwapper.com and second, the Chrome web store at chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/search-swapper/cjbcfallgciioplgkfabocdnnnibbfln. You need to understand one basic rule here. Just because a tool has its own webpage or is promoted in the web store it does not mean it is a reliable and useful application. As a matter of fact, only two users seem to have installed this plugin through the store, which should tell you about its popularity. This web store hosts hundreds of potentially harmful tools that get reported and blocked every day, one by one. This is the most likely fate of this PUP as well. In fact, if you want to know what you are about to install, you should always run a quick web search first. In this case, if you check the unique Chrome ID of this application (cjbcfallgciioplgkfabocdnnnibbfln), you will find a whole page of articles about why you should remove SearchSwapper.com from your computer. This should be enough proof for you to know that you are dealing with a potentially risky tool.
But, unfortunately, it gets worse. This unreliable search page can also be found in free software bundles travelling with malware infections. Such a bundle can pack several browser hijackers, adware applications, Trojans as well as potentially unwanted programs. Installing such a package could mean a great security risk. You need to see that this PUP may not be the only threat on your computer; in fact, SearchSwapper.com could be the smallest risk source. You can download such a malicious bundle if your computer is already infected with malware, such as adware. Such an infection can display corrupt ads (banners and pop-ups) while you are surfing the web and if you click on these, you may end up with a package on your PC that may contain this PUP on top of other more serious threats.
This can also happen if you visit suspicious torrent and shareware sites. These places are swarming with dangerous third-party ads. If you click on one, you could easily drop such a bundle onto your hard drive. If this happens to you, it is essential that you delete SearchSwapper.com and scan your PC with a proper malware scanner to see what else may threaten your virtual security.
This useless browser plugin claims to enable you to “control your choice of search engines” and in this aspect it actually delivers as promised. You can choose from a drop-down menu left of the search box whether you want to do your search by using Google, Yahoo, or Bing. However, the problem is that this PUP may be able to modify those search result pages and insert certain third-party ads and links. This is how this tool can actually make money for its creators. So you may think that you are on a legitimate results page and it is safe to click on any content, even advertisements. But you would be wrong and this mistake could cost you dearly. In fact, you may get redirected to fake websites pretending to be online shops or simple phishing overlay pages that can trick you into revealing your personal or banking information. Can you image what could happen if this sensitive information gets in the hands of cyber criminals? If you do not want to figure it out, you should not hesitate to remove SearchSwapper.com from your PC.
We have found that the best way to make sure that this PUP goes without a trace is to reset all affected browsers, including Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Internet Explorer. If you are not familiar with this process, please use our instructions below as a reference. You may realize now how important it is to protect your PC effectively. You can become more cautious about the websites your visit and the content you click on. However, the best way to safeguard your computer is to install a reliable anti-malware application, such as SpyHunter.
Mozilla Firefox
Google Chrome
Internet Explorer