Search.viewsearch.net Redirect (Mac)

What is search.viewsearch.net?

Search.viewsearch.net (also known as searchword.news) is a fake Internet search engine that generates the most relevant search results, and also provides users with the latest news trending on the Internet.

Judging on appearance alone, this website may seem legitimate, however, search.viewsearch.net continually records various data relating to Internet browsing activity. Furthermore, developers promote this site using rogue application installers that modify Internet browser settings without users' permission.

Deceptive installers hijack Safari, Google Chrome, and Mozilla Firefox, stealthily assigning the default search engine, new tab URL, and homepage options to search.viewsearch.net.

Initially, these changes may not seem important, however, users become unable to modify these settings, since installers infiltrate a number of additional applications and/or browser plug-ins (called "helper objects") to automatically reassign setting when attempts are made to change them. Therefore, returning browsers to their previous states becomes impossible.

Users are forced to visit search.viewsearch.net website without their consent, significantly diminishing the web browsing experience.

Research shows that helper objects and search.viewsearch.net continually gather various information relating to Internet browsing activity including Internet Protocol (IP) addresses (to determine geo-locations), website URLs visited, and search queries - these are just some examples from many.

This information might include personally identifiable details that are shared with cooperating third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) who often misuse personal data to generate revenue.

Therefore, data tracking can lead to serious privacy issues. If you encounter unwanted redirects to search.viewsearch.net, remove all suspicious apps/browser extensions immediately and avoid visiting this website again.

There are dozens of fake search engines that have very similar characteristics to search.viewsearch.net including, for example, search.arcahol.com, search.polebeary.com, and search.qroficce.com. All offer functions to supposedly improve the Internet browsing experience, however, these false claims are attempts to give the impression of legitimacy.

The purpose of fake search engines is to generate revenue for the developers. Most are useless for regular users. Rather than enabling the functionality promised, sites such as search.viewsearch.net collect personally identifiable information and deliver intrusive online advertisements.

How did search.viewsearch.net install on my computer?

This fake Internet search engine has an official download website, however, it is also distributed using a deceptive marketing method called "bundling". Developers know that many users do not express enough caution during the download/installation processes.

Therefore, information regarding modification of browser settings is hidden within the "Custom" or "Advanced" section or these procedures. By skipping this section, users inadvertently grant set-ups permission to modify a number of options. Furthermore, the system is exposed to risk of various infections.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

There are two main steps you should take to prevent this situation. Firstly, never rush when downloading and installing software. Closely analyze each step using the "Custom" or "Advanced" settings. Furthermore, decline all offers to download/install additional apps and never allow set-ups to modify options that are irrelevant to the installation.

Deceptive application installer promoting search.viewsearch.net browser hijacker:

Website promoting search.viewsearch.net:

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Quick menu:

• What is search.viewsearch.net?
• STEP 1. Remove search.viewsearch.net related files and folders from OSX.
• STEP 2. Remove search.viewsearch.net redirect from Safari.
• STEP 3. Remove search.viewsearch.net browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove search.viewsearch.net homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.

Video showing how to remove search.viewsearch.net browser hijacker using Combo Cleaner:

search.viewsearch.net redirect removal:

Remove search.viewsearch.net related potentially unwanted applications from your "Applications" folder:

Click the Finder icon. In the Finder window, select “Applications”. In the applications folder, look for “MPlayerX”,“NicePlayer”, or other suspicious applications and drag them to the Trash. After removing the potentially unwanted application(s) that cause online ads, scan your Mac for any remaining unwanted components.

Remove browser hijacker-related files and folders

Click the Finder icon from the menu bar. Choose Go, and click Go to Folder...

Check for browser hijacker generated files in the /Library/LaunchAgents/ folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: /Library/LaunchAgents/

In the "LaunchAgents" folder, look for any recently-added suspicious files and move them to the Trash. Examples of files generated by browser hijackers - "installmac.AppRemoval.plist", "myppes.download.plist", "mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist", "kuklorest.update.plist", etc. Browser hijacker commonly installs several files with the exact same string.

Check for browser hijacker generated files in the ~/Library/Application Support/ folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: ~/Library/Application Support/

In the "Application Support" folder, look for any recently-added suspicious folders. For example, "MplayerX" or "NicePlayer", and move these folders to the Trash.

Check for browser hijacker generated files in the ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ folder:

In the Go to Folder... bar, type: ~/Library/LaunchAgents/

In the "LaunchAgents" folder, look for any recently-added suspicious files and move them to the Trash. Examples of files generated by browser hijackers - "installmac.AppRemoval.plist", "myppes.download.plist", "mykotlerino.ltvbit.plist", "kuklorest.update.plist", etc. Browser hijacker commonly installs several files with the exact same string.

Check for browser hijacker generated files in the /Library/LaunchDaemons/ folder:

In the "Go to Folder..." bar, type: /Library/LaunchDaemons/

In the "LaunchDaemons" folder, look for recently-added suspicious files. For example "com.aoudad.net-preferences.plist", "com.myppes.net-preferences.plist", "com.kuklorest.net-preferences.plist", "com.avickUpd.plist", etc., and move them to the Trash.

Scan your Mac with Combo Cleaner:

If you have followed all the steps correctly, your Mac should be clean of infections. To ensure your system is not infected, run a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus. Download it HERE. After downloading the file, double click combocleaner.dmg installer. In the opened window, drag and drop the Combo Cleaner icon on top of the Applications icon. Now open your launchpad and click on the Combo Cleaner icon. Wait until Combo Cleaner updates its virus definition database and click the "Start Combo Scan" button.

Combo Cleaner will scan your Mac for malware infections. If the antivirus scan displays "no threats found" - this means that you can continue with the removal guide; otherwise, it's recommended to remove any found infections before continuing.

After removing files and folders generated by the browser hijackers, continue to remove rogue extensions from your Internet browsers.

Remove browser hijackers from Internet browsers

Remove Safari browser hijackers:

Open the Safari browser, from the menu bar, select "Safari" and click "Preferences...".

In the preferences window, select "Extensions" and look for any recently-installed suspicious extensions. When located, click the "Uninstall" button next to it/them. Note that you can safely uninstall all extensions from your Safari browser - none are crucial for regular browser operation.

Change your homepage:

In the "Preferences" window, select the "General" tab. To set your homepage, type the preferred website URL (for example: www.google.com) in the Homepage field. You can also click the "Set to Current Page" button if you wish to set your homepage to the website you are currently visiting.

Change your default search engine:

In the "Preferences" window, select the "Search" tab. Here you will find a drop-down menu labeled "Search engine:" Simply select your preferred search engine from the drop-down list.

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Safari.

Remove Google Chrome browser hijackers:

Click the Chrome menu icon (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "More Tools" and click "Extensions". Locate all recently-installed suspicious extensions, select these entries and click "Remove".

Change your homepage

Click the Chrome menu icon (at the top right corner of Google Chrome) and select "Settings". In the "On startup" section, disable the malicious extension (if present), look for a browser hijacker URL below the "Open a specific or set of pages" option. If present, click on the three vertical dots icon and select "Remove".

Change your default search engine:

To change your default search engine in Google Chrome: Click the Chrome menu icon (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "Settings", in the "Search engine" section, click "Manage search engines...", in the opened list look for a browser hijacker URL, when located click the three vertical dots near this URL and select "Delete".

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Google Chrome.

Remove malicious extensions from Mozilla Firefox:

Click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window) and select "Add-ons and themes". Click "Extensions", in the opened window locate all recently-installed suspicious extensions, click on the three dots and then click "Remove".

Change your homepage

To reset your homepage, click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window), then select "Settings", in the opened window disable malicious extension (if present), remove the browser hijacker URL and enter your preferred domain, which will open each time you start Mozilla Firefox.

Change your default search engine:

In the URL address bar, type "about:config" and press Enter. Click "Accept the Risk and Continue".

In the search filter at the top, type: "extensionControlled". Set both results to "false" by either double-clicking each entry or clicking the button.

• If you continue to have problems with browser redirects and unwanted advertisements - Reset Mozilla Firefox.

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