Search.hpackage-manager.net Redirect

What is search.hpackage-manager.net?

search.hpackage-manager.net is categorized as a fake search engine. Although it is promoted as legitimate, developers promote it using a browser hijacker, a PUA (potentially unwanted app) called Package Manager. According to the developers, this PUA supposedly allows users to track their packages (orders managed by UPS, USPS, FedEx, and other carriers).

Typically, users do not download and install apps of this type intentionally. When installed, Package Manager modifies browser settings and collects browsing-related information.

Browser hijackers usually target Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Internet Explorer. Once installed, Package Manager assigns search.hpackage-manager.net as the homepage, default search engine, and new browser tab URL. None of these settings can be undone or modified as long as this app is installed.

Therefore, users are forced to visit this website when they open a browser, new tab or search the internet using the browser URL bar. As mentioned, search.hpackage-manager.net is a fake search engine and does not generate any unique results. When a search query is entered, it simply redirects  to search.yahoo.com, a legitimate search engine by the Yahoo search provider.

Furthermore, Package Manager collects browsing-related information (IP addresses, search queries, URLs of visited websites, geo-locations, etc.), however, some fake search engines and browser hijackers also collect personal details. Developers share the information with third parties (cyber criminals) who misuse it to generate revenue.

Thus, having browser hijackers installed and using fake search engines can lead to problems relating to browsing safety, privacy, and sometimes even identity theft.

Threat Summary:

Name	search.hpackage-manager.net browser hijacker
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab
Symptoms	Manipulated Internet browser(s) settings (homepage, default Internet search engine, new tab settings). User's are forced to visit hijacker's website and search the Internet using their search engines.
Distribution methods	Deceptive pop-up ads, free software installers (bundling), fake flash player installers.
Damage	Internet browsing tracking (potential privacy issues), displaying of unwanted ads, redirects to shady websites.
Malware Removal (Windows)	To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

search.hfastmapsapp.com, search.hdirectionsandmapstab.com, and search.htemplatehub.co are just some examples of other fake search engines. Developers often present them as useful and legitimate, however, they provide none of the functionality promised. On the contrary, they are designed only to generate revenue for their developers.

How did Package Manager install on my computer?

As mentioned in our introduction, most people install PUAs inadvertently through intrusive ads capable of executing scripts, or when software developers employ "bundling", a deceptive marketing method used to trick people into installing PUAs together with other software.

They achieve this by hiding information regarding PUAs in "Custom", "Advanced" and other similar sections of the software download or installation set-ups. Third party software downloaders/installers are also used to install/download potentially unwanted software.

In most cases, they are monetized by promoting programs such as Package Manager. If you have clicked an intrusive ad and installed software, or used a third party downloader/installer, it is possible that you have inadvertently installed a potentially unwanted program on your computer or your web browser.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

Download software from official/trustworthy sources, avoid using third party software downloaders (or installers) and torrents. Check all available "Advanced", "Custom" and other sections/settings of the installation process. Do not skip the installation steps without checking these settings first.

Make sure that there are no checkboxes ticked by default, indicating that you agree to install/download unwanted software. Carefully choose which ads to click - malicious (or other untrustworthy) ads may seem legitimate, however, once clicked, they can redirect you to untrustworthy websites (gambling, pornography, adult dating, etc.).

If you accidentally click one of these ads, close opened tabs or windows and check for new plug-ins, add-ons, and extensions installed on your browser, or suspicious programs installed on your computer.

Eliminate unwanted software immediately. If your computer is already infected with Package Manager, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate this browser hijacker.

IMPORTANT NOTE! This deceptive site asks to enable web browser notifications.

Therefore, before commencing, perform these steps:

Google Chrome (PC):

• Click the Menu button (three dots) on the right upper corner of the screen
• Select "Settings", scroll down to the bottom and click "Advanced"
• Scroll down to the "Privacy and security" section, select "Content settings" and then "Notifications"
• Click three dots on the right hand side of each suspicious URL and click "Block" or "Remove" (if you click "Remove" and visit the malicious site once more, it will ask to enable notifications again)

Google Chrome (Android):

• Click on the Menu button (three dots) on the right upper corner of the screen and click "Settings"
• Scroll down, click on "Site settings" and then "Notifications"
• In the opened window, locate all suspicious URLs and click on them one-by-one
• Select "Notifications" in the "Permissions" section and click "Block"

Mozilla Firefox:

• Click the Menu button (three bars) on the right upper corner of the screen
• Select "Options" and click on "Privacy & Security" in the toolbar on the left hand side of the screen
• Scroll down to the "Permissions" section and click the "Settings" button next to "Notifications"
• In the opened window, locate all suspicious URLs, click the drop-down menu and select "Block"

Internet Explorer:

• Click the Gear button on the right upper corner of the IE window
• Select "Internet options"
• Select the "Privacy" tab and click "Settings" under "Pop-up Blocker" section
• Select suspicious URLs under and remove them one by one by clicking the "Remove" button

Microsoft Edge:

• Click the menu button (three dots) on the right upper corner of the Edge window
• Scroll down, find and click "Settings"
• Scroll down again and click "View advanced settings"
• Click "Manage" under "Notifications"
• Click the switch under each suspicious website

Safari:

• Click "Safari" button on the bottom of the screen and select "Preferences..."
• Select the "Websites" tab and then select "Notifications" section on the left pane
• Check for suspicious URLs and apply the "Deny" option for each

Website promoting Package Manager browser hijacker:

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Quick menu:

• What is search.hpackage-manager.net?
• STEP 1. Uninstall Package Manager application using Control Panel.
• STEP 2. Remove search.hpackage-manager.net redirect from Internet Explorer.
• STEP 3. Remove Package Manager browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove search.hpackage-manager.net homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.
• STEP 5. Remove search.hpackage-manager.net redirect from Safari.
• STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.

Package Manager browser hijacker removal:

Windows 11 users:

Right-click on the Start icon, select Apps and Features. In the opened window search for the application you want to uninstall, after locating it, click on the three vertical dots and select Uninstall.

Windows 10 users:

Right-click in the lower left corner of the screen, in the Quick Access Menu select Control Panel. In the opened window choose Programs and Features.

Windows 7 users:

Click Start (Windows Logo at the bottom left corner of your desktop), choose Control Panel. Locate Programs and click Uninstall a program.

macOS (OSX) users:

Click Finder, in the opened screen select Applications. Drag the app from the Applications folder to the Trash (located in your Dock), then right click the Trash icon and select Empty Trash.

In the uninstall programs window: look for any recently installed suspicious applications (for example, "Package Manager"), select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".

After uninstalling the potentially unwanted applications that cause browser redirects to the search.hpackage-manager.net website, scan your computer for any remaining unwanted components. To scan your computer, use recommended malware removal software.

Package Manager browser hijacker removal from Internet browsers:

Video showing how to remove browser redirects:

Remove malicious add-ons from Internet Explorer:

Click the "gear" icon (at the top right corner of Internet Explorer), select "Manage Add-ons". Look for any recently installed suspicious extensions, select these entries and click "Remove".

Change your homepage:

Click the "gear" icon (at the top right corner of Internet Explorer), select "Internet Options", in the opened window, remove hxxp://search.hpackage-manager.net and enter your preferred domain, which will open each time you launch Internet Explorer. You can also enter about: blank to open a blank page when you start Internet Explorer.

Change your default search engine:

Click the "gear" icon (at the top right corner of Internet Explorer), select "Manage Add-ons". In the opened window, select "Search Providers", set "Google", "Bing", or any other preferred search engine as your default and then remove "search.hpackage-manager.net".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.hpackage-manager.net browser hijacker, reset your Internet Explorer settings to default.

Windows XP users: Click Start, click Run, in the opened window type inetcpl.cpl In the opened window click the Advanced tab, then click Reset.

Windows Vista and Windows 7 users: Click the Windows logo, in the start search box type inetcpl.cpl and click enter. In the opened window click the Advanced tab, then click Reset.

Windows 8 users: Open Internet Explorer and click the gear icon. Select Internet Options.

In the opened window, select the Advanced tab.

Click the Reset button.

Confirm that you wish to reset Internet Explorer settings to default by clicking the Reset button.

Remove malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

Click the Chrome menu icon  (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "More tools" and click "Extensions". Locate "Package Manager" and other recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons, and remove them.

Change your homepage:

Click the Chrome menu icon  (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "Settings". In the "On startup" section, disable "Package Manager", look for a browser hijacker's URL (hxxp://www.search.hpackage-manager.net) 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 "search.hpackage-manager.net", and when located, click the three vertical dots near this URL and select "Remove from list".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.hpackage-manager.net browser hijacker, reset your Google Chrome browser settings. Click the Chrome menu icon  (at the top right corner of Google Chrome) and select Settings. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen. Click the Advanced… link.

After scrolling to the bottom of the screen, click the Reset (Restore settings to their original defaults) button.

In the opened window, confirm that you wish to reset Google Chrome settings to default by clicking the Reset button.

Remove malicious plug-ins from Mozilla Firefox:

Click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window), select "Add-ons". Click on "Extensions" and remove "Package Manager" (or simply "Packages"), as well as all other recently installed browser plug-ins.

Change your homepage:

To reset your homepage, click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window), then select "Options", in the opened window, disable "Package Manager" (or simply "Packages"), remove hxxp://search.hpackage-manager.net 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 "I'll be careful, I promise!".
In the search filter at the top, type: "moz-extension"
Right-click on the found preferences and select "Reset" to restore default values.

Optional method:

Computer users who have problems with search.hpackage-manager.net browser hijacker removal can reset their Mozilla Firefox settings.

Open Mozilla Firefox, at the top right corner of the main window, click the Firefox menu, in the opened menu, click Help.

Select Troubleshooting Information.

In the opened window, click the Refresh Firefox button.

In the opened window, confirm that you wish to reset Mozilla Firefox settings to default by clicking the Refresh Firefox button.

Remove malicious extensions from Safari:

Make sure your Safari browser is active and click Safari menu, then select Preferences...

In the preferences window select the Extensions tab. Look for any recently installed suspicious extensions and uninstall them.

In the preferences window select General tab and make sure that your homepage is set to a preferred URL, if its altered by a browser hijacker - change it.

In the preferences window select Search tab and make sure that your preferred Internet search engine is selected.

Optional method:

Make sure your Safari browser is active and click on Safari menu. From the drop down menu select Clear History and Website Data...

In the opened window select all history and click the Clear History button.

Remove malicious extensions from Microsoft Edge:

Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge), select "Extensions". Locate any recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons, and remove them.

Change your homepage and new tab settings:

Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge), select "Settings". In the "On startup" section look for the name of the browser hijacker and click "Disable".

Change your default Internet search engine:

To change your default search engine in Microsoft Edge: Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge), select "Privacy and services", scroll to bottom of the page and select "Address bar". In the "Search engines used in address bar" section look for the name of the unwanted Internet search engine, when located click the "Disable" button near it. Alternatively you can click on "Manage search engines", in the opened menu look for unwanted Internet search engine. Click on the puzzle icon near it and select "Disable".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.hpackage-manager.net browser hijacker, reset your Microsoft Edge browser settings. Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge) and select Settings.

In the opened settings menu select Reset settings.

Select Restore settings to their default values. In the opened window, confirm that you wish to reset Microsoft Edge settings to default by clicking the Reset button.

• If this did not help, follow these alternative instructions explaining how to reset the Microsoft Edge browser.

Summary:

A browser hijacker is a type of adware infection that modifies Internet browser settings by assigning the homepage and default Internet search engine settings to some other (unwanted) website URL. Commonly, this type of adware infiltrates operating systems through free software downloads. If your download is managed by a download client, ensure that you decline offers to install advertised toolbars or applications that seek to change your homepage and default Internet search engine settings.

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