Remove Finder-search.com Hijacker

Finder-search.com is a homepage hijacker that targets major internet apps such as Google Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge. Because hackers are always creating malware that can exploit said software, users of these browser programs are highly vulnerable to adware. Finder-search.com naturally influences internet software functionality as well as web user surfing behaviors.

It is classified as unwanted program

Bear in mind that Finder-search.com is potentially unwanted program (PUP) that spreads via the internet. The individuals who created the main app, Finder-Search have their own methods for disseminating their dangerous software. By advertising Finder-Search as a useful tool, they are attempting to dupe online users into installing it. Certain computer users end up installing the browser extension without realizing its core goals and intents. Internet users could see the modifications on their computer, especially in the browser later on. Another approach taken by attackers is through software bundling. During the installation process, shareware such as free creativity apps, games, tools, or fake software updates frequently loads Finder-search.com.

Screenshot of Finder-search.com

With integration, Finder-search.com will start tracking browser activity. This PUP will then monitor users’ web browsing patterns and log crucial information. It primarily infects the browser by altering the settings that may substantially influence essential sections and pages. It will replace the user’s preferred home page, new tab page, and default search engine with its own website URL, Finder-search.com.

Why is it risky?

Finder-search.com will commence the deployment of obtrusive ads and pop-ups on the browser. While internet users are browsing, this website can display a lot of advertisements on the browser. The constant display of aggressive advertisements negatively affects the browsing experience of users. It typically overshadows web content, reducing page visibility. False updates, phony downloads, fake goods and services, and other potential scams may be promoted in the advertisements and pop-up windows. In order to earn profit for its developers, Finder-search.com shows a lot of these advertisements. This is currently believed to be the PUP’s main goal, and utilizing the dishonest marketing ploy will only cause risks to web users.

Finder-search.com Removal Procedure

In this section, we will provide effective guidelines to get rid of the threat from an infected computer. To automatically remove malware, you may download the recommended scanner. For comprehensive instructions, please execute the manual step-by-step procedures.

 

Instant Removal : Scan the computer with antivirus program

Combo Cleaner is a trusted computer security and optimization tool equipped with a powerful virus and malware detection engine. This program can get rid of Finder-search.com browser hijacker and similar threats, whether it has infected PC, Mac, Android, or iOS.

1. Download the application from the following page:

2. Save the file to your preferred location.

3. Double-click the downloaded file CCSetup.exe and install with the default settings.

4. At the end of the setup process, click Finish to run Combo Cleaner.

5. The tool will update the database file; please wait for this process to complete.

6. To begin checking for threats like Finder-search.com, click on the Start Scan button. Wait for this scan to finish.

Screenshot of Combo Cleaner PC

7. At the end of the scan process, click on Remove all threats to delete Finder-search.com, including all harmful objects from the computer.

To fully optimize the features of antivirus and privacy scanners, users may have to upgrade to the premium version.

Please continue with the succeeding removal procedures if you are comfortable manually getting rid of the browser hijacker and malicious items linked to it.

Manual Removal : Steps to get rid of Finder-search.com

The steps below will guide you to manually remove Finder-search.com without having to purchase a recommended virus scanner. We have tested the procedures; hence, the attackers may make modifications overtime. As a result, terms, names, and images in the guide may differ from what users are seeing recently.

The procedure may require you to close the browser or restart the computer; therefore, we are suggesting to Bookmark or Print this page. You must be logged in to Windows with an Administrator account to be able to execute some of the tasks. Check here to know if you are currently using an account with Admin rights. 

Step 1 : Uninstall Finder-search.com from Windows

1. On your keyboard, press Windows Key + R. Type the appwiz.cpl command and click OK.

Screenshot of Run Command

2. The Program and Features window will open. Arrange the list in a chronological manner, with recently installed applications on top. To do this, click on the 'Installed On' column.

3. Select Finder-search.com or a recently installed suspicious entry from the list.

4. Click on Uninstall to remove it from the Windows system. You can close the Program and Features window once this procedure is done.

Step 2 : Delete Finder-search.com Browser Extension

Most adware and unwanted programs use an application called a "browser extension" to be able to take over the settings of internet applications. Therefore, we highly recommend checking and removing the extension that is closely related to Finder-search.com. If it is not present, look for and delete any suspicious browser extension.

Google Chrome

For Google Chrome Browser

1. Open the Google Chrome browser.

2. Input the strings below in the address bar and press Enter on the keyboard:

chrome://extensions

Screenshot of Chrome Extensions in PC

3. Look for Finder-search.com or a relevant entry and remove it from Google Chrome.

Microsoft Edge

For Microsoft Edge Browser

1. On your keyboard, press Windows Key + R. Type the appwiz.cpl command and click OK.

Screenshot of Run Command

2. The Program and Features window will open. Arrange the list in a chronological manner, with recently installed applications on top. To do this, click on the 'Installed On' column.

Screenshot of Program and Featires

3. Select Finder-search.com or a recently installed suspicious entry from the list.

4. Click on Uninstall to remove it from the Windows system.

If Finder-search.com is still present on the browser and unwanted homepage and pop-ups persist, another option is to remove the hijacker from the browser settings.

5. Open the Microsoft Edge program.

6. Input the following string in the address bar and press Enter on the keyboard:

edge://extensions/

Screenshot of MS Edge Address Bar

7. Look for and Remove or Disable entries for Finder-search.com from the Installed Extensions area.

Screenshot of Edge Extension Removal

8. You may now close the window and restart the Microsoft Edge browser.

Mozilla Firefox

For Mozilla Firefox Browser

1. Open the Mozilla Firefox browser.

2. Type or copy and paste the strings below in the address bar and press Enter on the keyboard:

about:addons

Screenshot of Firefox Extension

3. Click on Extensions from the sidebar menu.

4. Look for an entry that pertains to Finder-search.com and Disable or Remove it from the browser using the options button.

Opera

For Opera Browser

1. Open the Opera internet browser program.

2. In the address bar, type or copy and paste the text below. Press Enter on your keyboard.

opera://extensions

Screenshot of Extensions in Opera Browser

3. Find the malicious extension and then, click on Remove button to delete it from the Opera browser.

Step 3 : Scan with AdwCleaner and Reset Chrome Policies

In addition to the procedure, we suggest scanning the computer with AdwCleaner tool. Possibly, there are some traces of Finder-search.com on the browser that were not deleted during the preceding steps. This tool will scan the computer and check for presence of malicious applications.

1. Follow the link below to download the tool called AdwCleaner.

2. When the download has completed, please close all running programs on the computer, especially browsers affected by Finder-search.com.

3. Browse the location of the downloaded file and double-click on adwcleaner.exe to start running the tool.

4. If Windows displays a prompt saying, "Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device?" click Yes to proceed.

5. On the AdwCleaner dashboard, click on Settings.

Screenshot of AdwCleaner Policies

6. While in the Settings window, please turn On the Reset Chrome Policies, Reset IE Policies, and Reset Winsock.

7. Go back to the Dashboard and click the Scan Now button.

Screenshot of AdwCleaner Scanner

8. AdwCleaner searches the computer for malicious programs, extensions, plug-ins, adware, and any items that may be associated with Finder-search.com.

9. Clean or Remove all suspicious and harmful items identified after the thorough scan.

10. AdwCleaner will then prompt an option to run another repair, which will reset Winsock and other settings. Please click the Run Basic Repair button.

Screenshot of Basic Repair

11. A message will appear stating that "All processes will be closed..." Please click Continue.

Image of Basic Repair Message

12. After the cleanup procedure, rebooting the computer is required to finalize the removal of Finder-search.com as well as other detected threats.

Step 4 : Run the Final Scan Using Sophos Home Antivirus.

To remove Finder-search.com automatically, scanning the computer with this powerful virus and malware removal tool is recommended. This scanner does not just uncover known threats like viruses or malware; it is also effective in discovering browser hijacker like Finder-search.com.

1. Please click on the link below to download the program.

2. After downloading, locate the file SophosInstall.exe in the Downloads folder.

3. Install by double-clicking on the file.

4. If it prompts "Do you want to allow this app to make changes on your device?" please click Yes.

5. Next, it will display the Terms and Conditions page. Click the Install button to begin.

Screenshot of Terms by Sophos Home

6. Run the installation with the default settings. Please note that an internet connection is required in order to download important updates.

7. After finishing the installation, you must login to the dashboard. If you already have a Sophos account, please login. Otherwise, please enter your details and click on the Create Account button.

8. Once you are in the Sophos Home console, click the Scan button to start checking the computer for Finder-search.com components.

Screenshot of Sophos Home

9. Scanning may take a while; please wait for this process to finish.

10. After scanning the computer, Sophos Home will start cleaning or deleting files infected with Finder-search.com.

11. You may now close Sophos Home. The computer is now free from Finder-search.com, as well as associated malware and viruses.

The above procedures should have totally eliminated Finder-search.com browser hijacker. However, if you find that there are still remnants of the malware, please proceed to the next steps below.

Step 5 : Fixing the Homepage and Search Engine

Google Chrome

For Google Chrome Browser

1. Open the Google Chrome browser. Type or copy and paste the following on the address bar. Then, press Enter on the keyboard:

chrome://settings

Screenshot of Chrome Settings Page

2. Go to the left sidebar and click On Startup.

3. Select "Open a specific page or set of pages" in the right panel.

Chrome On Startup Screenshot

4. Locate the unwanted Homepage URL, click on More Actions icon (3-dot), and select Remove or Edit.

5. If you choose Edit, enter the desired web address as your home page, replacing Finder-search.com. Click Save.

6. To set the default search engine, go to the left sidebar, and this time, select Search Engine.

Screenshot of Search Settings

7. Click on the Manage search engines and site search button in the right panel.

8. Find the unwanted Search Engine in the list. Click on More Actions icon, and then click Delete.

9. Go back to the left side bar and click Search Engine.

Default Search Engine Screenshot

10. In the right panel, choose a valid entry from the "Search engine used in the address bar."

You can now restart the Google Chrome browser to see if the unwanted homepage and search engine related to Finder-search.com are gone.

Microsoft Edge

For Microsoft Edge Browser

1. Open the Microsoft Edge browser on your computer.

2. In the address bar, type or copy and paste the string below, then press Enter on the keyboard:

edge://settings/startHomeNTP

MS Edge Start Page Screenshot

3. Go to the "When Edge Starts" area. Under the "Open these pages" section, click More Actions (3-dot).

4. Select Edit to open the Edit Page window.

5. Input your desired address to replace the homepage settings of Finder-search.com.

Screenshot of Home URL

6. Click the Save button. You may now restart Microsoft Edge browser.

Mozilla Firefox

For Mozilla Firefox Browser

1. Open the Mozilla Firefox browser on your computer.

2. Type or copy and paste the following on the address bar, then press Enter on the keyboard:

about:preferences

3. Click Home in the sidebar area.

Firefox Preferences Screenshot

4. Under "Homepage and new windows", you may choose Firefox Home (Default) or Custom URLs.

5. If you chose Custom URLs, input the desired URL to replace Finder-search.com settings.

6. To configure the default search engine, select Search in the left sidebar to display the settings.

Screenshot of Firefox Default Search

7. Under the "Default Search Engine" list, please select a legitimate one (i.e., Google).

8. Scroll down to "Search Shortcuts" and select an unwanted search engine.

Remove Search from Firefox Image

9. Click on the Remove button to delete the unwanted search engine. You may now restart the Mozilla Firefox browser.

Opera

For Opera Browser

1. In the address bar of Opera browser, type or copy and paste the text below. Press Enter on your keyboard.

opera://settings/searchEngines

2. Scroll down to the "Search Engine" section and find your desired name (i.e. Google Search)

Screenshot of Default Search

3. Click on the ellipses icon (3-dot) and select Make Default.

4. In the same section, click the ellipses icon of the unwanted search engine and select Delete to remove the malicious search engine from the Opera browser.

Screenshot of Removing Search Engine

5. Go back to the Basic section and scroll down to the "On Startup" section.

Screenshot of Opera Homepage Settings

6. Find the unwanted homepage address, click its ellipses icon (3-dot), and choose between Remove or Edit.

7. If you choose Edit, enter the desired web address as your homepage, replacing Finder-search.com. Click Save.

System Compatibility Notice

Logo of Windows

We ensured that our method to get rid of Finder-search.com is compatible with the majority of Microsoft operating systems (Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows 8, Windows 10, and Windows 11). To prevent complicated steps, the commands used in the instructions are common, useful, and tested. If you encounter any compatibility problems when following this tutorial, please message us or leave your comment below, and we will reply and make the required modifications.

About the author

Discussion

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
0 Comments
Newest
Oldest Most Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Scroll to Top