How to remove the Blast Search browser hijacker

What is Blast Search browser hijacker?

Blast Search is rogue software classified as a browser hijacker. Following successful infiltration, it makes alterations to browser settings to promote a fake search engine. Blast Search promotes blast-search.net in this way. Additionally, it has data tracking capabilities, which are employed to monitor users' browsing activity.

To ensure its persistence, this browser hijacker also adds the "Managed by your organization" feature to Google Chrome browsers. Due to the dubious tactics used to proliferate Blast Search, it is also classified as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA).

Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and other popular browsers are typical targets of browser hijackers. They operate by assigning the addresses of fake search engines as the homepage, default search engine and new tab/window URL. These seemingly minor modifications significantly affect the browsing experience.

For example, with Blast Search installed, each new browser tab/window opened and search query typed into the URL bar redirects to blast-search.net. Rogue search engines have no genuine value to users, as they are usually unable to provide unique results and simply redirect to (or cause redirection chains ending with) legitimate sites.

The web searcher promoted by Blast Search (blast-search.net) is no exception to this and redirects to Google. Furthermore, recovering a hijacked browser is impossible without removing the software affecting it, since browser hijackers can undo any changes users attempt to make to their browsers (if access to the settings is permitted at all).

As mentioned, blast-search.net can track data. It monitors browsing activity (visited URLs, viewed pages, typed search queries, etc.) and collects sensitive data extracted from it (IP addresses, geolocations and other details). The gathered data is likely to contain personally identifiable information.

Furthermore, the developers often monetize this information by sharing it with and/or selling it to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals). To summarize, the presence of data-tracking software on browsers/systems can result in financial loss, serious privacy issues and even identity theft.

Therefore, you are strongly advised to remove all suspect applications and browser extensions/plug-ins immediately upon detection.

Threat Summary:

Name	Blast Search
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Browser Extension(s)	Blast Search, Blast
Promoted URL	blast-search.net
Serving IP Address (blast-search.net)	62.210.26.148
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.

Browser hijackers often seem legitimate and harmless. DPS Websafe, Storm Search, and StreaminSearchs are just some examples of software within this classification. Users are often enticed into download/installation with offers of various "useful" functions, however, the promised features are rarely operational, and this is common to PUAs in general.

The only purpose of these unwanted applications is to generate revenue at users' expense. Rather than delivering any real value, PUAs hijack browsers, force-open untrusted and malicious websites, run intrusive ad campaigns and gather private information.

How did Blast Search install on my computer?

PUAs are distributed through the download/installation set-ups of other software. This deceptive marketing method of packing regular products with unwanted or malicious additions is called "bundling".

By rushing through download/installation processes (e.g. skipping steps and sections, using pre-set options, etc.), many users risk unintentionally allowing bundled content into their devices. Certain PUAs have "official" promotional pages, from which they can be downloaded.

Intrusive advertisements proliferate these apps as well. Once clicked, they can execute scripts, designed to stealthily download/install PUAs.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

You are advised to research all products before download/installation and/or purchase. Use only official and verified download channels. Unofficial and free file-hosting sites, Peer-to-Peer sharing networks and third party downloaders can offer deceptive or bundled content, and so these channels are untrusted.

When downloading/installing, you are advised to read the terms, explore all possible options, use the "Custom" or "Advanced" settings and opt-out of supplementary apps, tools, features, etc. It is also important to exercise caution when browsing.

Intrusive ads may seem legitimate, however, they can redirect to highly dubious web pages (e.g. gambling, pornography, adult-dating, and so on). If you encounter ads/redirects of this kind, check the system and remove all dubious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins without delay.

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

Blast Search browser hijacker asking for various permissions:

Appearance of Blast Search browser hijacker (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 Blast Search?
• STEP 1. Uninstall Blast Search application using Control Panel.
• STEP 2. Remove blast-search.net redirect from Internet Explorer.
• STEP 3. Remove Blast Search browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove blast-search.net homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.
• STEP 5. Remove blast-search.net redirect from Safari.
• STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.

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

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

Blast 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://blast-search.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 "Blast Search".

Optional method:

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

Optional method:

Computer users who have problems with blast-search.net 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 blast-search.net 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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