How to uninstall SApp+, Ext Apps and other browser hijackers

What is vmos.xyz?

There are many fake search engines on the internet. In most cases, they are promoted through potentially unwanted applications (PUAs), browser hijackers. Note that vmos.xyz is the address of a fake search engine, which is promoted through PUAs named SApp+ and Ext Apps.

It is possible that other browser hijackers also promote this address. Generally, PUAs achieve this by changing certain browser settings. Most browser hijackers also promote fake search engines and track information.

Browser hijackers change settings such as the address of the default search engine, homepage, and new tab.

They assign these settings to the address of a fake search engine (in this case, vmos.xyz), however, research shows that SApp+ and Ext Apps do not actually modify browser settings - instead, they detect when users enter search queries and redirect them to vmos.xyz regardless.

Note that hijacked Chrome browsers open vmos.xyz through bytsm.xyz; Firefox browsers open it through searchmes.xyz and a number of other dubious addresses. Users of hijacked browsers are forced to visit the address of a fake search engine when they open a browser, new tab and enter search queries, as long as the browser hijacker is installed.

Typically, apps of this type do not allow users to modify the aforementioned browser settings. They only way is to uninstall the rogue software. This is not the only reason to uninstall browser hijackers: these apps collect IP addresses, geolocations, addresses of opened/visited pages, entered search queries, and other browsing-related information.

Developers can misuse the data to generate revenue by selling it to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) who then misuse it in other ways. It is possible that an installed browser hijacker might record confidential, sensitive information.

Apps of this type expose users to risk of becoming victims of identity theft, problems relating to online privacy, browsing safety and other issues. Therefore, never install PUAs. If SApp+, Ext Apps and other browser hijackers are already installed on the browser and/or operating system, remove them immediately.

Threat Summary:

Name	vmos.xyz browser hijacker
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Browser Extension(s)	SApp+ and Ext Apps
Supposed Functionality	These browser hijackers supposedly improve the browsing experience.
Affected Browser Settings	Homepage, new tab URL, default search engine.
Detection Names	Forcepoint ThreatSeeker (Suspicious), Fortinet (Spam), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal)
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.

vitosc.xyz, qlopx.xyz and vprx.xyz are other fake search engines that are promoted through browser hijackers. PUAs are commonly advertised as useful, and supposedly deliver various features, improve the browsing experience, and so on.

In fact, they do not operate as advertised and are the reason behind serious issues. Remove these apps from browsers and operating systems.

How did vmos.xyz install on my computer?

Typically, various unwanted apps are distributed through deceptive advertisements and the download/installation set-ups of other programs. If clicked, some ads can download and/or install unwanted software by executing certain scripts. In other cases, users download and install PUAs when they leave settings such as "Custom" and "Advanced" of the set-ups unchanged.

PUAs are often distributed by including them into various download/installation set-ups of other programs - many users leave these settings unchanged, thereby agreeing by default with offers to download and install PUAs with regular software. This distribution method is known as "bundling".

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

Do not download or install software through third party downloaders, installers, torrent clients, eMule (and other Peer-to-Peer networks), unofficial pages, or other channels of this kind - they can be used to distribute unwanted, malicious programs. Software should be downloaded from official websites and through direct links.

Check "Custom", "Advanced" and other settings of the download/installation setup and dismiss any offers to download or install additional, unwanted software before completing the process. Do not click ads displayed on untrusted websites. They usually open other pages of this kind.

In some cases, they can execute certain scripts that download and install PUAs, or even malicious programs. Remove all unwanted, suspicious plug-ins, extensions and add-ons that are installed on the browser immediately. The same should be applied to programs of this kind that are installed on the operating system.

If your computer is already infected with browser hijackers, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate it.

Hijacked Google Chrome browser redirects to vmos.xyz via bytsm.xyz (GIF):

Deceptive website offers to update Mozilla Firefox with a fake Firefox installer (updater), which is designed to install SApp+:

Dubious website designed to promote Ext Apps:

Notification stating that SApp+ can access and store various data (on Mozilla Firefox):

 

Notification stating that Ext Apps can read and change various data (on Google Chrome):

 

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 vmos.xyz?
• STEP 1. Uninstall unwanted applications using Control Panel.
• STEP 2. Remove vmos.xyz redirect from Internet Explorer.
• STEP 3. Remove vmos.xyz browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove vmos.xyz homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.
• STEP 5. Remove vmos.xyz redirect from Safari.
• STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.

vmos.xyz redirect 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 (like "SApp+" and "Ext Apps"), select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".

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

vmos.xyz redirect 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 (like "SApp+" and "Ext Apps"), 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://vmos.xyz 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 "SApp+", "Ext Apps" or other installed PUAs.

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the vmos.xyz 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 all recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons (like "Ext Apps") 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 "Ext Apps", look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.vmos.xyz) 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 "vmos.xyz", 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 vmos.xyz 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 all recently installed browser plug-ins (like "SApp+").

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 "SApp+" (or any other PUA), remove hxxp://vmos.xyz 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 vmos.xyz 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 vmos.xyz 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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