Search.searchfw.com Removal Guide

Search.searchfw.com is a browser hijacker, and that is one of the most annoying security issues out there. A browser hijacker may not be an immediate computer security threat, but it will eat at your patience little by little until eventually, you will slip, and this program redirects you to dangerous pages that could host severe malware threats. The bottom line is that you have to remove Search.searchfw.com because this program is not useful. It is a dangerous infection that entered your computer without your permission. And no program that enters your computer without your permission should ever be tolerated.

This browser hijacker affects all major browsers in the market, except for Edge. Upon the installation, it changes the default homepage and search engine. What’s more, Search.searchfw.com also tracks your web browsing activity, logging the websites you frequent and the search keywords you use. Even if you do not use its search engine, the program can still monitor your online activity. As a result, you will soon notice an increased amount of commercial advertisements appearing in the form of pop-ups and in-text ads. The browser hijacker makes money each time you click those ads, so it will try to persuade you to click them.

That is also one of the reasons Search.searchfw.com tracks your web history. It needs to generate your online profile to find out your likes and preferences. Then it can launch specific custom ads targeted directly at you. For example, if you have been looking for a place to stay at during your vacation, you can be sure that Search.searchfw.com will generate a lot of hotel ads, and some of them may not be as reliable as you might think. Of course, infecting you with malware is not part of the hijacker’s agenda, but it does not review the content that gets embedded in its ads. Therefore, cyber criminals could easily make use of this hijacker for malware distribution.

What’s more, there is a high possibility that you have many other unwanted applications on-board, too. Why? Because Search.searchfw.com gets distributed in software packages, and those software packages come from freeware websites. Perhaps you did not even know that you installed Search.searchfw.com on your computer with some application you have been looking for. However, we are sure that sudden browser settings modification is not the only annoying nuisance you have suffered lately. Is your system performance slower than the usual? Perhaps your browser is also very slow, and you are constantly assaulted by multiple pop-ups?

If that is the case, then you certainly need to run a full system scan with SpyHunter free scanner to find all the potential threats. You can remove Search.searchfw.com from your computer manually if you want, but the best way to ensure that your PC is safe and clean is investing in a legitimate antispyware application. What’s more, with a computer security tool of your choice, you will be able to safeguard your system against other malicious threats in the future. You should not forget, however, that your own web browsing habits are just as important in sustaining your system’s security as your antispyware application.

How to Delete Search.searchfw.com

Internet Explorer

1. Press Win+R and the Run prompt will open.
2. Type regedit into the Open box. Click OK.
3. Open HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main.
4. Right-click the Start page value on the right. Choose Modify.
5. Replace the startup page address and press OK.
6. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchScopes\{0633EE93-D776-472f-A0FF-E1416B8B2E3A}.
7. Change these values on the right:
   FaviconURL
   FaviconURLFallback
   TopResultURL
   URL
8. Close Registry Editor.

Firefox

1. Press Win+R and type %AppData% into the open box. Click OK.
2. Navigate to Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[Unique Mozilla User ID].
3. Find and open the prefs.js file.
4. Delete this string from the file: user_pref("browser.startup.homepage", "http://search.searchwf.com");
5. Save changes and close the file.

Chrome

1. Press Win+R and the Run prompt will open.
2. Type %LocalAppData% into the Open box and click OK.
3. Open Google\Chrome\User Data\Default.
4. Delete the Preferences, Secure Preferences, and Web Data files.