How to uninstall apps that promote searchsafelypro.com and similar fake search engines

What is searchsafelypro.com?

searchsafelypro.com is the address of a fake search engine. Generally, these URLs are promoted by potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) classified as browser hijackers. Apps of this type promote fake search engines (hijack browsers) by modifying browser settings.

Commonly, they also function as information tracking tools. Note that people often download and install browser hijackers inadvertently.

Most browser hijackers change settings such as the address of the default search engine, homepage, and new tab. In this case, the PUA sets them to searchsafelypro.com. The main purpose is to ensure that this address is opened when users open a browser, new tab or enter search queries into the URL bar.

Like most search engines of this type, searchsafelypro.com does not generate unique results - it displays those generated by Yahoo. When used, it simply redirects to search.yahoo.com, and this is the main reason why such search engines are classified as fake.

To remove searchsafelypro.com from browser settings or change it to another address, users must uninstall the browser hijacker that originally reassigned these settings - browser hijackers prevent users from changing the settings as long as they are installed.

This is not the only reason to uninstall browser hijackers. Apps of this type often collect browsing data such as IP addresses, geolocations, addresses of opened/visited pages, entered search queries, and other details. Browser hijackers might also gather private, sensitive information.

The data is sold to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) who misuse it to generate revenue in other ways. Users of hijacked browsers might thus become victims of identity theft, experience problems relating to privacy, browsing safety, and other problems.

For these reasons, remove any browser hijackers from the browser and computer immediately. Never download or install this rogue software.

Threat Summary:

Name	searchsafelypro.com browser hijacker
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Supposed Functionality	This fake search engine supposedly enhances the browsing experience.
Affected Browser Settings	Homepage, new tab URL, default search engine.
Serving IP Address	104.18.43.205
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 more search engines similar to searchsafelypro.com including, for example, wwmiox.xyz, lpxsx.xyz, and cbsearch.site. Note that fake search engines generate misleading results to promote dubious websites and should be avoided. The same applies to browser hijackers. Typically, apps of this type are useless and simply cause problems.

How did searchsafelypro.com install on my computer?

In many cases, people download and PUAs inadvertently via dubious ads designed to execute certain scripts or when software developers distribute them using the "bundling" method. This method is used to trick users into downloading and installing PUAs together with other, regular  software.

To achieve this, they include potentially unwanted apps into the download/installation set-ups of other programs as 'additional offers'. These are mentioned in "Custom", "Advanced" or other settings of set-ups. When users fail to check and change these settings, they often allow PUAs to infiltrate.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

You are advised to download programs from official websites and via direct links. Avoid third party downloaders and installers, Peer-to-Peer networks (such as torrent clients, eMule, etc.), unofficial pages, and other similar channels. These tools/channels are often used to distribute unwanted, even malicious software.

Check all settings such as "Custom" and "Advanced" and decline offers to download or install additional (unwanted) software. Do not click ads appearing on pages relating to gambling, pornography, adult dating, and other dubious sites, since they can open other dubious web pages and cause unwanted downloads/installations.

Remove any unwanted or suspicious add-ons, plug-ins and extensions installed on the browser, and programs of this kind 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.

searchsafelypro.com displays results generated by Yahoo (GIF):

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

searchsafelypro.com 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, select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".

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

searchsafelypro.com 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, 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://searchsafelypro.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 "searchsafelypro.com".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the searchsafelypro.com 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 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, look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.searchsafelypro.com) below the “Open a specific or set of pages” option. If presents 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 "searchsafelypro.com", 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 searchsafelypro.com 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.

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 remove hxxp://searchsafelypro.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 searchsafelypro.com 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 searchsafelypro.com 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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