How to remove Landslide Search browser hijacker

What is Landslide Search?

Landslide Search is a rogue application advertised as a tool supposedly capable of providing improved search results. In fact, it operates as a browser hijacker and modifies browsers to promote a fake search engine (search.landslidesearch.com). Additionally, this app monitors users' browsing activity.

Most users install Landslide Search inadvertently, and therefore it is also classified as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA).

Browser hijackers target Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer and other popular browsers. Following successful installation, these applications reassign the homepage, default search engine and new tab/window URLs to the addresses of their fake search engines.

Landslide Search assigns these settings to search.landslidesearch.com. Therefore, each new tab/window opened and each search query typed into the URL bar all redirect to search.landslidesearch.com.

Most fake search engines cannot generate unique results, and so redirect to (or cause redirection chains ending with) Google, Yahoo, Bing or other legitimate search engines. Note that search.landslidesearch.com is no exception - it redirects to search.yahoo.com.

While these alterations may seem insignificant and relatively easy to undo, they significantly diminish the browsing experience. Any changes users attempt to make to their browsers are automatically reset (if access to settings is allowed at all). To recover the affected browser, it is necessary to eliminate the hijacker application.

As mentioned, Landslide Search can track data. This trait is common to browser hijackers. They can often record users' browsing activity (URLs visited, pages viewed, search queries, etc.) and gather personal information (IP addresses, geolocations and other details).

This vulnerable data can then be shared with third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) intent on misusing it for profit.

The presence of data tracking content on systems can thus lead to serious privacy issues, financial loss and even identity theft. To ensure device integrity and user safety, you are advised to remove all suspicious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins immediately upon detection.

Threat Summary:

Name	Landslide Search
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Browser Extension(s)	Landslide Search
Supposed Functionality	Supposedly provides improved search results.
Promoted URL	search.landslidesearch.com
Serving IP Address (search.landslidesearch.com)	104.124.58.145
Affected Browser Settings	Homepage, new tab URL, default search engine.
Symptoms	Manipulated internet browser settings (homepage, default Internet search engine, new tab settings). Users are forced to visit the 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 browser tracking (potential privacy issues), display of unwanted ads, redirects to dubious 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.

Fast Flight Tracker, QuickTemplateFinder, MapsMyWayFree, and Accurate Weather Today are a few examples of browser hijackers similar to Landslide Search. In general, all PUAs share common traits. They often seem legitimate and entice users into downloading/installing them with a wide variety of "useful" functions.

These features rarely work as advertised and, in most cases, are nonoperational.

The sole purpose of all unwanted content is to generate revenue for the developers. Regular users receive no value. Rather than delivering any features, PUAs make unauthorized changes to browsers, run intrusive advertisement campaigns, force-open untrustworthy/malicious websites and collect private data.

How did Landslide Search install on my computer?

Some PUAs (e.g. Landslide Search) have "official" download web pages, however, they can also be downloaded/installed together with other software. This deceptive marketing tactic of packing normal programs with unwanted or malicious content is called "bundling".

By rushing through download/installation process (e.g. ignoring terms, skipping steps and sections, using pre-set options, etc.), many users endanger devices with potential system infiltration and infections. Intrusive advertisements also proliferate PUAs. When clicked, they can execute scripts designed to stealthily download/install additional, unwanted applications.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

Research all content, before downloading/installing. Use only official and verified download channels. Avoid untrustworthy sources such as free file-hosting sites, Peer-to-Peer sharing networks (BitTorrent, eMule, Gnutella, etc.) and other third party downloaders.

Untrusted download channels are far more likely to offer deceptive and/or bundled software. When downloading/installing, read the terms, explore all available options, use the "Custom/Advanced" settings and opt-out of supplementary apps, tools, features and so on.

Intrusive advertisements often seem legitimate and harmless, however, they can redirect to highly dubious sites (gambling, pornography, adult-dating and others). If you encounter ads/redirects of this type, inspect the device and remove all dubious applications and/or browser extensions/plug-ins without delay.

If your computer is already infected with Landslide Search, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate this browser hijacker.

Landslide Search browser hijacker asking for various permissions:

Website promoting Landslide Search browser hijacker:

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▼ DOWNLOAD Combo Cleaner By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. 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.

Quick menu:

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

Landslide Search 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, "Landslide Search"), select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".

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

Landslide Search 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.landslidesearch.com 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 "Landslide Search".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.landslidesearch.com redirect, 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 "Landslide Search" 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 "Landslide Search", look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.search.landslidesearch.com) 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.landslidesearch.com", 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.landslidesearch.com redirect, 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 "Landslide Search", 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 "Landslide Search", remove hxxp://search.landslidesearch.com 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: "landslidesearch"
Right-click on the found preferences and select "Reset" to restore default values.

Optional method:

Computer users who have problems with search.landslidesearch.com redirect 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.landslidesearch.com redirect, 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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