Mozilla Firefox browser is one of the favorite targets of malware and adware authors. With the millions of users of this popular browser, chances are that the majority of them may acquire potentially unwanted programs from various makers.
Even if security software is installed, there are still slim chances that the Firefox browser may be infected by adware or malware. For this reason, we are providing a simple and yet effective way to remove adware and malware from Mozilla Firefox.
Ways to get rid of Adware and Malware from Firefox Browser
The removal steps on this page don’t require technical expertise to successfully remove adware from Mozilla Firefox. All you have to do is follow what is exactly stated in the guide and use all the suggested tools. Keep in mind to download tools and programs only from the official web page, as stated in this method.
Step 1 : Remove Unwanted Add-ons from Firefox Browser
Add-ons and extensions are often used by most adware to integrate themselves into the Mozilla Firefox web browser. In this topic, we will discuss how you can remove the add-on to stop activities such as browser redirects, pop-up ads, and other unwanted functions caused by the adware.
1. Open the Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. Press Ctrl+Shift+A on your keyboard to bring out ‘Add-Ons Manager’. Alternatively, you can type ‘about:addons‘ in the address bar. This will provide a list of all extensions and plugins installed.
3. Under Manage your Extensions area, select the adware entry and click the Options (…) to reveal the selections.
4. Click the Remove button to get rid of the unwanted add-on. Please confirm your selection to proceed.
5. Please restart Firefox and see if the changes you have made are successful.
Step 2 : Change Add-on Preferences
On some instances, removing the extensions alone will not get rid of the adware from Firefox. In this case, there is a trick to delete other hidden components using the configuration box.
Changing the advanced options may impact Firefox’s stability and security. This should only be modified by experienced computer users.
1. On Firefox address bar, please type about:config.
2. If this is the first time you are using this feature, you will receive a warning, “Proceed with Caution!” please click “Accept the Risk and Continue.”
3. There is a search box below the address bar. Input the name of the malware to display a list of related entries.
4. One at a time, highlight the adware entries and click the Delete button to remove the malicious item.
5. If there is no Delete option, you may click on the Toggle button to set the preferences to False. Please refer to the image below.
Step 3 : Use Combo Cleaner to totally clean Firefox
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 malware, click on the Start Scan button. Wait for this scan to finish.
7. At the end of the scan process, click on Remove all threats to delete malware, 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.
Step 4 : Scan the Computer with AdwCleaner
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 malware.
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.
6. While in the Settings window, please turn On the Reset Chrome Policies and Reset IE Policies.
7. Go back to the Dashboard and click the Scan Now button.
8. AdwCleaner searches the computer for malicious programs, extensions, plug-ins, adware, and any items that may be associated with malware.
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.
11. A message will appear stating that "All processes will be closed..." Please click Continue.
12. After the cleanup procedure, rebooting the computer is required to finalize the removal of malware as well as other detected threats.
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