How to uninstall Vista Search browser hijacker

What is Vista Search?

Vista Search is a potentially unwanted application (PUA), a browser hijacker designed to improve the browsing experience, however, it promotes the address of a fake search engine (feed.vista-search.com), by changing certain browser settings, and also gathers browsing-related information. Typically, people download and install PUAs inadvertently.

Most browser hijackers promote fake search engines by changing settings such as the address of the default search engine, homepage, and new tab. Vista Search assigns them to feed.vista-search.com. In summary, this app force users to visit feed.vista-search.com when they open a browser, new tab and enter search queries into the URL bar.

Note that most browser hijackers prevent users from removing addresses of fake search engines from the aforementioned settings. Therefore, the only way to remove feed.vista-search.com is to uninstall Vista Search. Typically, fake search engines do not generate any unique results and simply provide misleading information.

Note that feed.vista-search.com redirects users to search.yahoo.com, thereby displaying results generated by the Yahoo search engine. Furthermore, browser hijackers are often designed to collect information relating to users' browsing activity. For example, IP addresses, geolocations, entered search queries, addresses of visited pages, and so on.

Some browser hijackers record sensitive information as well. Developers misuse the data to generate revenue by selling it to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) who misuse it in other ways.

Vista Search and other browser hijackers might thus cause problems relating to browsing safety, privacy, and it is possible that gathered information could be misused to steal identities. Therefore, Vista Search or other browser hijackers should never be downloaded or installed.

Threat Summary:

Name	Vista Search
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Browser Extension(s)	Vista Search
Supposed Functionality	This browser hijacker supposedly improves the browsing experience.
Promoted URL	feed.vista-search.com
Serving IP Address (feed.vista-search.com)	13.84.45.249
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.

There are many browser hijackers on the internet. Some examples are Searchsio, MyDocsToPDF and Protect My Search Daily. In most cases, software of this type collects user-system information and promotes the address of a fake search engine.

Developers commonly promote browser hijackers as useful, legitimate applications, however, few deliver any valid features or other value. Generally, they are useless and simply cause problems. Therefore, remove browser hijackers and other PUAs from the browser and operating system.

How did Vista Search install on my computer?

Vista Search is advertised on various dubious websites, however, people generally download and install browser hijackers and other PUAs inadvertently. Typically, these applications are downloaded and installed through deceptive advertisements that execute certain scripts, or with other software that people wish to download intentionally.

To trick people into these unwanted downloads and installations, developers often include PUAs into the download/installation set-ups of other programs. The included apps are presented as 'additional offers', which are usually found in settings such as "Custom", "Advanced, and so on.

Many people download and install software without checking these settings, thereby allowing PUAs to be downloaded and installed together with regulare software.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

Do not download or install anything from unofficial, dubious websites, Peer-to-Peer networks (e.g., torrent clients, eMule), third party downloaders, installers or other sources/tools of this kind. All files and programs should be downloaded through official websites and direct links.

Unwanted downloads and installations can be avoided by checking "Custom", "Advanced" and other similar options of the download/installation setup and declining offers to download and install unwanted software. Intrusive advertisements that are displayed on dubious websites can open other untrusted pages or cause download/installation of unwanted apps.

Therefore, do not click these ads. Remove any unwanted, suspicious extensions, add-ons and plug-ins that are installed on the browser immediately. Programs of this kind that are installed on the operating system should also be removed.

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

Websites promoting Vista Search browser hijacker:

Vista Search asks permission to read and change various data:

Instant automatic malware removal: Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
▼ 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 Vista Search?
• STEP 1. Uninstall Vista Search application using Control Panel.
• STEP 2. Remove feed.vista-search.com redirect from Internet Explorer.
• STEP 3. Remove Vista Search browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove feed.vista-search.com homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.
• STEP 5. Remove feed.vista-search.com redirect from Safari.
• STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.

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

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

Vista 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://feed.vista-search.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 "Vista Search".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the feed.vista-search.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 "Vista 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 "Vista Search", look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.feed.vista-search.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 "feed.vista-search.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 feed.vista-search.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 "Vista 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 "Vista Search", remove hxxp://feed.vista-search.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: "extensionControlled"
Set both results to "false" by either double-clicking each entry or clicking the button.

Optional method:

Computer users who have problems with feed.vista-search.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 feed.vista-search.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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