How to uninstall the Satellite And Earth Maps browser hijacker

What is Satellite And Earth Maps?

Satellite And Earth Maps is dubious software endorsed as a tool for fast access to various maps and directions. It is categorized as a browser hijacker, due to the modifications this application makes to browsers to promote hsatelliteandearthmaps.com, a fake search engine.

Additionally, most browser hijackers gather information relating to browsing activity. Since users typically download/install Satellite And Earth Maps inadvertently, it is classified as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA).

Browser hijackers target Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer and other popular browsers. These rogue apps operate by assigning the addresses of fake search engines as the homepage, default search engine and new tab/window URLs.

Therefore, with this software installed, each new browser tab/window opened and each search query typed into the URL bar redirects to hsatelliteandearthmaps.com. Rogue search engines are seldom able to generate search results, and so they redirect (or cause redirection chains leading) to Yahoo, Bing, Google and other genuine sites.

This applies to hsatelliteandearthmaps.com as well, which redirects to Yahoo (search.yahoo.com). Recovering a hijacked browser is impossible without removing the software hijacking it, as browser hijackers can restrict/deny access to the settings and/or undo any permitted changes made.

Furthermore, Satellite And Earth Maps has data tracking capabilities, which are used to monitor browsing activity. Information of interest includes URLs visited, web pages viewed, search queries typed, IP addresses, geolocations and other details. The collected data usually contains personally identifiable information.

Browser hijacker developers monetize this information by sharing it with and/or selling it to third parties parties (potentially, cyber criminals). Therefore, the presence of data-tracking software on devices can lead to financial loss, serious privacy issues and even identity theft.

To protect device integrity and user safety, all suspicious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins must be eliminated without delay.

Threat Summary:

Name	Satellite And Earth Maps
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Detection Names	Avast (Win32:Adware-gen [Adw]), DrWeb (Adware.Spigot.157), ESET-NOD32 (A Variant Of Win32/WinWrapper.V Potential), Fortinet (Riskware/WinWrapper), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal).
Browser Extension(s)	Satellite And Earth Maps
Supposed Functionality	Quick access to maps and directions.
Promoted URL	hsatelliteandearthmaps.com
Serving IP Address (hsatelliteandearthmaps.com)	54.165.22.44
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.

My Apps Center, Package Tracker Guru and MyWeatherFree are some examples of other browser hijackers. They may seem normal and tempt users into download/installation with offers of various "useful" functionality (e.g. easy access to maps), however, the features promised rarely work as advertised and, in most cases, do not work at all.

In fact, this information is true of most PUAs. The sole purpose of these unwanted apps is to generate revenue for the developers. Rather than delivering any real value, PUAs can hijack browsers, force-open untrusted or malicious websites, run intrusive advertisement campaigns and collect private information.

How did Satellite And Earth Maps install on my computer?

Some PUAs (including Satellite And Earth Maps) have "official" promotional sites, from which they can be downloaded. These applications can also be downloaded/installed with 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. ignoring terms, skipping steps, etc.), many users risk unintentionally allowing bundled content into the system. Intrusive ads proliferate PUAs as well. When clicked, the advertisements can execute scripts to make stealthy downloads/installations.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

You are strongly advised to research all software prior to download/installation and/or purchase. Use only official and verified download channels. Untrusted sources such as unofficial and free file-hosting websites, P2P sharing networks (BitTorrent, eMule, Gnutella, etc.) and other third party downloaders commonly offer deceptive and bundled content.

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

Intrusive ads may seem legitimate, however, they can redirect to dubious and harmful web pages (e.g. gambling, pornography, adult-dating, and many others). If you encounter ads or redirects of this kind, inspect the system and remove all suspect applications and browser extensions/plug-ins immediately.

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

Satellite And Earth Maps browser hijacker installation setup:

Website promoting Satellite And Earth Maps browser hijacker:

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

Satellite And Earth Maps 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, "Satellite And Earth Maps"), select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".

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

Satellite And Earth Maps 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://hsatelliteandearthmaps.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 "Satellite And Earth Maps".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the hsatelliteandearthmaps.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 "Satellite And Earth Maps" 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 "Satellite And Earth Maps" (or "Satellite and Earth Maps"), look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.hsatelliteandearthmaps.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 "hsatelliteandearthmaps.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 hsatelliteandearthmaps.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 "Satellite And Earth Maps", 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 "Satellite And Earth Maps", remove hxxp://hsatelliteandearthmaps.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 hsatelliteandearthmaps.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 hsatelliteandearthmaps.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.

Post a comment:
If you have additional information on hsatelliteandearthmaps.com redirect or it's removal please share your knowledge in the comments section below.

▼ Show Discussion