Adware application like Clear Search may appear like a valid browser extension at first sight. By just looking at it, web users can never distinguish untoward behavior. Hence, when they start to use the browser or perform an online web search where Clear Search is installed, that will be the time that the user may recognize that adware is now dominating the search engine as well as start-up page.
How Clear Search infects the computer?
Clear Search enters the computer uninvited. It is dubbed as a potentially unwanted program (PUP) because most of the time, web users does not request for its installation. The majority of its infection cases have emerged from the installation of malicious freeware, shareware, and third party apps. We must single out that freeware where Clear Search is embedded are those that are offered by unpopular sites, torrent sites, and doubtful file servers. To be safe, download required program only from reputable sources and official websites.
In the case that web user downloads and run the setup of the malicious freeware, there is no indication that Clear Search is part of it especially when executed using the Default installation process. This traditional method will install Clear Search along with surplus apps that come with it. For this reason, computer security analysts are suggesting to opt for Custom or Advanced setup procedure in order to examine the inclusions. If there is an unwanted app or adware like Clear Search, computer user can easily deselect the option to exclude it from loading.
The Clear-search.com hijacker
It is worth to mention that Clear Search is a member of a large group of adware. In fact, it was patterned from the previous threats like FortSearch, Hidden Searcher, AwesomeSearches, and many more. Therefore, Clear Search possesses the same browser hijacking skills and to be fully functional, it designates Clear-search.com as the default homepage and search engine. Since Clear-search.com is an unreliable tool, web users should not expect to attain the same useful search outcome as compare to legitimate ones as Google, Bing, or Yahoo. All that Clear-search.com can provide is useless search results that are filled with paid links and malicious advertisements.
Naturally, web user must remove Clear Search to restore security and privacy on the internet browser program. Complete guide is provided on this post along with powerful virus and malware scanner.
Clear Search Removal Procedure
Below is a systematic instruction that is very useful in getting rid of the potentially unwanted program (PUP) from compromised Windows computer. Aside from removing the malicious browser extension, this guide is also helpful in deleting browser hijacker and pop-ups.
In order to totally eliminate the threat, it is vital to follow the process in exact manner.
Quick Fix - Scan the PC with Combo Cleaner for Windows
Combo Cleaner is a trusted PC security and optimization tool equipped with powerful virus and malware detection engine. This program can get rid of browser hijacker like Clear Search through this procedure.
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 signature file, please wait for this process to complete.
6. To begin checking for threats like Clear Search, 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 Clear Search hijacker including all malicious objects from the computer.
Free features of Combo Cleaner for Windows includes Disk Cleaner, Big Files finder, Duplicate files finder, and Uninstaller. To use antivirus, privacy scanner, and to delete identified threats, users have to upgrade to a premium version.
Please continue with the succeeding removal procedures if your are comfortable to manually get rid of the threat and malicious items linked with it.
Step 1 : Delete Clear Search Browser Extension
Most adware and unwanted programs are using a program called browser extension to be able to take over the settings of internet applications. Therefore, we highly recommend to check and remove the extension that is closely related to Clear Search.
Remove Clear Search Extension from Google Chrome
1. Open Google Chrome browser.
2. Type chrome://extensions/ in the address bar and press Enter on keyboard.
3. Find Clear Search or relevant entry and remove it from Google Chrome browser.
Uninstall Clear Search Extension from Mozilla Firefox
1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. Type about:addons in the address bar and press Enter on keyboard.
3. Choose Extensions on sidebar menu.
4. Look for object that is pertaining to Clear Search and remove it from the browser.
After deleting the malicious browser extension, it is expected that Clear Search is also gone from the homepage.
Remove Clear Search Add-ons from Internet Explorer and Edge Browser
1. Open Internet Explorer program.
2. Go to top Menu and click Tools. Then, select Manage Add-ons from the drop-down list.
3. Look for and Remove or Disable entries of Clear Search from Toolbars and Extension. Additionally, delete unwanted entry from Search Providers section.
4. Close the window and restart Internet Explorer.
If Clear Search is still present on the IE browser and there are still unwanted homepage and pop-ups, another option is to remove the adware from Windows Control Panel.
5. Press Windows Key + R and then, type appwiz.cpl command.
6. Program and Features window will open. Arrange the list in chronological manner with recently installed applications on top. To do this, click on 'Installed On' column.
7. Select Clear Search or recently installed unwanted entry. Then, click on Uninstall to remove it from Windows system.
Step 2 : Scan the computer with Sophos Antivirus
To remove Clear Search automatically, scanning the computer with this powerful anti-virus tool is recommended. This scanner does not just uncover known threats like viruses or malware, it is also effective in discovering browser hijacker like Clear Search that slows down online browsing activities.
1. Download Sophos Virus Removal Tool from the link below. Save the file on your computer where you can easily access it.
2. Once the download completes, browse the location of the file. Double-click to run the program and begin the install process.
3. On first windows of installation wizard, click Next to continue. Then, it will display the program’s License Agreement. You need to Accept the terms in order to proceed. If Windows prompts for User Account Control, please click Yes to proceed.
4. On succeeding windows, click Next or Continue to carry on with the installation. After completing the installation process, Launch Sophos Virus Removal Tool.
5. Internet connection is required when running this scanner in order to download important updates. Make sure that everything is up-to-date to effectively remove malicious program like Clear Search.
6. Click the button to carry out the Scan. This will check the system for presence of malicious objects, malware, and viruses. The tool reveals items that were found linked to Clear Search and other suspicious entities. Be sure to remove all identified threats.
The above procedures should have totally eliminated the Clear Search browser hijacker. However, if you found that there are still remnants of the threat, please proceed to manual removal of associated objects as outlined below.
Step 3 : Scan and Delete Adware with AdwCleaner
In addition to the procedure, we suggest scanning the computer with AdwCleaner tool. Possibly, there are some traces of Clear Search on the browser that was not deleted during the preceding steps. This tool will scan the computer and check for presence of malicious applications as well as invalid browser entries that produces hijacking, redirects, and pop-ups.
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 Clear Search.
3. Browse the location of the downloaded file and double-click on adwcleaner_Ver.exe to start running the tool. Then, click on Scan button.
4. AdwCleaner searches the computer for malicious programs, extensions, plug-ins, adware, and any items that may be associated to Clear Search. It will also check for suspicious entries on browser settings that is associated with the hijacker.
5. Clean or Remove all suspicious and harmful items identified after the thorough scan.
6. After the cleanup procedure, rebooting the computer is required to finalize the removal of detected threats.
Check if your internet browser application is no longer being bothered by Clear Search. If the browser hijacker still persists, please continue with the steps below to reset internet programs to default settings.
Optional : Reset Internet Browser Program
Cleaning your internet browser from clutter and unwanted add-on/extension is a must when dealing with Clear Search. The procedure below discuss on resetting various browsers to its default state.
Restore Google Chrome to Default Settings
Resetting Google Chrome to default settings is helpful in deleting hard-to-remove extension such as from Clear Search. This method is highly advisable to perform if you have difficulty in removing unwanted extension.
1. Open Google Chrome Internet browser.
2. On the address bar, type chrome://settings/reset and press Enter key.
3. Under Reset and clean up section, choose Restore settings to their original defaults.
4. Click Reset settings button to clear all entries of Clear Search.
5. Close the existing tab and restart Google Chrome. That should have removed Clear Search extension and associated objects.
Reset Mozilla Firefox to Default
This section describes how to remove unwanted extension from Firefox that may be related to Clear Search. This process can fix many browser issues by restoring Firefox to factory settings without affecting your essential information (bookmarks, browsing history, passwords, and Internet cookies) on the browser. If you desire to remove only specific extension, please see manual removal of add-on from Firefox.
1. Input the string about:support on Firefox web address and press Enter on keyboard.
2. You will now see the Troubleshooting Information page of Mozilla Firefox.
3. You will notice a section on upper-right corner of the screen stating Give Firefox a tune up. Click the Refresh Firefox button.
4. If confirmation window appears, click Refresh Firefox to continue.
5. Firefox browser will close and start the resetting process. When done, it will display a list of restored data. Clear Search should be gone by now. Click Finish to open a fresh version of Firefox.
Restore Internet Explorer to Default Settings
1. Open Internet Explorer and navigate to top menu. Click Tools, and then Internet Options.
2. Select Advanced tab on Internet Options window.
3. On lower part of the window, under Reset Internet Explorer Settings area, click the Reset button. Please see image for reference.
Your data like favorites, bookmark, and history will remain in the browser. However, this process may delete add-ons by Clear Search and other unknown objects. If you prefer to carry out the procedure manually, please add-on removal from Internet Explorer.
