Search.fcb-search.com Removal Guide

Search.fcb-search.com is an interactive search provider that is targeted at the fans of FC Barcelona, a soccer club from  Catalonia, Spain. Surprisingly, this search provider specifically targets the Israel region, which immediately raises a red flag. After doing some tests in our internal lab, we confidently classify this unique search tool as a browser hijacker because it can modify Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox browsers in an undesirable manner. Most computer users find this hijacker after downloading an extension called “FCB Extension” or “FCBnewtab Extension” that is available at chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/fcb-extension/edejchafbkalllomnodnigdhdhkdlbih and fcbnewtab.com. When you install this extension onto Chrome, you will be informed about changes to your “search settings,” but you will not be informed that your startup page (opens New Tab that is modified) and search provider tools will be changed. Needless to say, some computer users regard this as a good reason to delete Search.fcb-search.com.

Of course, you cannot download the FCB Extension onto your Firefox browser from the Chrome web store. This leaves the official download source, fcbnewtab.com, which was set up by Imali Media Ltd. The “Free Install” button is not followed by any information regarding search modifications, which further proves that Search.fcb-search.com is a browser hijacker. Notably, the Firefox version of this hijacker does not affect the homepage; however, it sets Example Engine as your default search provider. As you can see, the name of this search tool attempts to conceal Search.fcb-search.com. Another feature that is different between these two browsers is redirecting to fcbgamepass.com. As soon as you install the suspicious extension onto your Firefox browser, you will be redirected to this website. Even if it is authentic, illegal rerouting to third-party pages is considered dangerous and risky, and, according to our malware analysts, this is another important reason to remove this strange software from your operating system.

The suspicious Search.fcb-search.com hijacker is not identical to Search.wondrousmoviessearch.com, Search.tvaddictsearch.com, and other similar hijackers, but our researchers have found that they belong to the same family. All of these suspicious search tools are associated with extensions that modify search settings. Most of these extensions are promoted via the Chrome web store and official download pages; however, we have found that they can also be spread via bundles controlled by third parties. In this case, you might find the unwanted extension and hijacker installed along with malware and other undesirable programs. If you are not sure whether or not the software installed on your PC is malicious, use a legitimate malware scanner to figure this out. Another method of distribution for this unreliable software is using pop-ups to promote the installer, and you might encounter these pop-ups by visiting malicious websites. In the worst case scenario, you will be introduced to pop-ups by active adware.

The interface of Search.fcb-search.com might be attractive. At the bottom of the home page, you can see an image representing fcbarcelona.com and its social media profiles, as well as the logos of sponsors. Since you cannot actually interact with this content, it is most likely that it is attached just to make you think that you are visiting a website that is associated with the official FC Barcelona page. Of course, this is not the case. Additionally, the hijacker represents a live Twitter feed by FC Barcelona, which allows users to follow the latest news. Besides this, this hijacker includes such tools as FCB News, FCB Videos, and Live Soccer Games. On top of all that, Search.fcb-search.com redirects to us.search.yahoo.com, which is a popular search provider. Despite the fact that the services of this strange software might seem authentic and reliable, they are not, and you should never trust tools that utilize the services of legitimate tools to conceal the collection of information and initiate redirecting to third-party pages.

You can remove Search.fcb-search.com by eliminating the unwanted Chrome and Firefox extensions. If you do that, no leftovers will persist, and you will be able to focus on the remaining threats. The guide below shows how to erase this undesirable software in a way that helps you learn more about it first. Of course, you can skip all this by installing an anti-malware tool that could help you eliminate existing threats and protect yourself from them in the future.

How to delete Search.fcb-search.com

1. Open Explorer (Win+E) and delete the edejchafbkalllomnodnigdhdhkdlbihfolder in these directories (enter the directory into the address bar of the Explorer):
   • %LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Extensions\
   • %UserProfile%\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Extensions\
2. Enter %LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Local Storage into the address bar.
3. Right-click and Deletethese files:
   • chrome-extension_edejchafbkalllomnodnigdhdhkdlbih_0.localstorage
   • chrome-extension_edejchafbkalllomnodnigdhdhkdlbih_0.localstorage-journal
   • http_search.fcb-search.com_0.localstorage
   • http_search.fcb-search.com_0.localstorage-journal
4. Enter %LocalAppData%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default into the address bar.
5. Right-click and Delete these Chrome files: Preferences, Secure Preferences, Web Data.
6. Enter %AppData%\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\*.default\extensions into the address bar (note that the * symbolizes a unique folder name).
7. Right-click and Delete this Firefox file: fcbnewtab-the-extension1@mozilla.com.xpi.