How to remove the IStreamSearch browser hijacker

What is IStreamSearch?

IStreamSearch is rogue software designed to make modifications to browser settings to promote istreamsearch.com (a fake search engine). Due to this, IStreamSearch is classified as a browser hijacker. Furthermore, this browser hijacker also has data tracking capabilities, which are used to monitor users' browsing activity.

Due to the dubious methods used to proliferate IStreamSearch, it is classified as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA).

Popular browsers with large user bases are common targets of browser hijackers. They reassign the homepage, default search engine and new tab/window URLs to the addresses of fake search engines. IStreamSearch also makes these alterations to browsers to promote istreamsearch.com.

To elaborate on how these modifications affect browsing, with IStreamSearch installed, each new browser tab/window opened and search query typed into the URL bar redirects to istreamsearch.com.

Rogue search engines are seldom capable of providing search results, and so they redirect to (or cause redirection chains ending with) Google, Yahoo, Bing and other genuine sites. The web searcher promoted by IStreamSearch (istreamsearch.com) is no exception to this and simply redirects to the Yahoo (search.yahoo.com) search engine.

Browser hijackers can restrict/deny access to the browser settings and/or undo any permitted changes made. Therefore, recovering an affected browser is impossible without removing the browser hijacker. As mentioned, IStreamSearch can track data.

It can record browsing activity (URLs visited, pages viewed, search queries typed, etc.) and collect personal information extracted from it (IP addresses, geolocations and other details). This sensitive information is then shared with and/or sold to third parties (potentially, cyber criminals).

In summary, the presence of data-tracking software on devices can lead to serious privacy issues, financial loss and even identity theft. To ensure browser/system integrity and user safety, all suspicious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins must be eliminated immediately upon detection.

Threat Summary:

Name	IStreamSearch
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Browser Extension(s)	IStreamSearch
Promoted URL	istreamsearch.com
Serving IP Address (istreamsearch.com)	104.24.123.100
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.

MovieSearches, ConverterSearchNow, and Jolly Web are some examples of other  hijackers. They may seem legitimate and offer a wide variety of "useful" functionality, however, the features promised are seldom operational. In fact, this information is true of most PUAs.

The only purpose of this unwanted software is to generate revenue for the developers. Regular users receive no real value and can experience serious problems. PUAs hijack browsers, cause redirects, run intrusive advertisement campaigns and collect private data.

How did IStreamSearch install on my computer?

Certain PUAs (including IStreamSearch) have "official" download pages. These applications can also be downloaded/installed with other programs. "Bundling" is the term used to define this deceptive marketing technique of packing regular software with unwanted or malicious additions.

Rushing download/installation processes (e.g. ignoring terms, skipping steps and sections, etc.) increases the risk of unintentionally allowing bundled content into the system. When clicked, intrusive ads can execute scripts to download/install PUAs without users' permission.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

You are advised to research all software before download/installation and/or purchase. It is crucial to only download from official and verified sources, since untrusted channels including unofficial and free file-hosting websites, Peer-to-Peer sharing networks and other third party downloaders can offer deceptive and bundled content.

When downloading/installing, it is important to read the terms, explore all available options, use the "Custom" or "Advanced" settings and opt-out of supplementary apps, tools, features, etc. Intrusive advertisements typically seem normal and harmless, however, they can redirect to dubious web pages (e.g. gambling, pornography, adult-dating, and so on).

If you encounter ads or redirects of this kind, inspect the system and remove all suspect applications and browser extensions/plug-ins without delay. If your computer is already infected with IStreamSearch, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate this browser hijacker.

IStreamSearch browser hijacker asking for various permissions:

Website promoting IStreamSearch browser hijacker:

Appearance of IStreamSearch browser hijacker promoting istreamsearch.com (GIF):

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

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

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

IStreamSearch browser hijacker removal from Internet browsers:

Video showing how to remove browser redirects:

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 "IStreamSearch" 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 "IStreamSearch", look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.istreamsearch.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 "istreamsearch.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 istreamsearch.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 "IStreamSearch", 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 "IStreamSearch", remove hxxp://istreamsearch.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 istreamsearch.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 istreamsearch.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.

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://istreamsearch.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 "IStreamSearch".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the istreamsearch.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.

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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