Tv-Plug-In Adware
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What is Tv-Plug-In?
Tv-Plug-In is presented as an application that supposedly allows users to watch thousands of TV channels - "The TVplugin lets you watch thousands of television channels and radio stations from anywhere around the world." By offering this functionality, developers of Tv-Plug-In often tricks users into believing that this app is legitimate and useful.
In fact, Tv-Plug-In often infiltrates systems without users’ permission. In addition, this application generates intrusive online advertisements and continually monitors browsing activity. For these reasons, it is classed as a potentially unwanted adware-type program (PUP).
Information gathered by Tv-Plug-In includes website URLs visited, pages viewed, search queries, and IP addresses. Many users are unaware that this information might contain personal details. After gathering this information, developers of Tv-Plug-In share it with cooperating third party companies who often might misuse personal data to generate revenue.
Therefore, the presence of an information-tracking app on your system can lead to serious privacy issues or even identity theft. Another downside of Tv-Plug-In is the display of deceptive advertisements. This application employs a 'virtual layer' to display pop-up, banner, and other similar advertisements.
These conceal underlying content, thereby significantly diminishing the Internet browsing experience and can also lead to infectious websites. Even accidental clicks can lead to further computer infections. You are strongly advised to uninstall this PUP immediately.
Tv-Plug-In is regular adware with very similar characteristics to hundreds of other PUPs. Examples include PepperZip, Security Guard, Results Hub, and TheBrowser.
All adware falsely claims to provide valuable functionality, however, rather than providing any real value, applications such as Tv-Plug-In generate intrusive online advertisements and track Internet browsing activity. The purpose of these applications is to generate revenue for the developers.
How did Tv-Plug-In install on my computer?
Research shows that Tv-Plug-In adware is distributed using a deceptive software marketing method called 'bundling' (stealth installation of potentially unwanted programs with regular software/apps). Many users do not express enough caution when downloading and installing software.
For this reason, developers conceal potentially unwanted programs such as Tv-Plug-In within the 'Custom' or 'Advanced' settings. Unaware of this, users skip commonly this section, leading to inadvertent installation of rogue software. Developers' revenue is dependent on the number of PUPs distributed and, therefore, they never properly disclose installation of adware.
How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?
There are two main steps you should take to prevent infiltration of PUPs such as Tv-Plug-In. Firstly, closely analyze each step of the software download/installation processes, use the 'Custom' or 'Advanced' settings, and carefully follow these procedures. Secondly, cancel all third party applications, since bundled software is often malicious.
Tv-Plug-In adware installer set-up:
Screenshot of Tv-Plug-In application:
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Quick menu:
- What is Tv-Plug-In?
- STEP 1. Uninstall Tv-Plug-In application using Control Panel.
- STEP 2. Remove Tv-Plug-In adware from Internet Explorer.
- STEP 3. Remove Tv-Plug-In ads from Google Chrome.
- STEP 4. Remove 'Ads by Tv-Plug-In' from Mozilla Firefox.
- STEP 5. Remove Tv-Plug-In ads from Safari.
- STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.
Tv-Plug-In adware 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 "Tv-Plug-In", select this entry and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".
After uninstalling the potentially unwanted program that causes Tv-Plug-In ads, scan your computer for any remaining unwanted components or possible malware infections. To scan your computer, use recommended malware removal software.
Remove Tv-Plug-In adware from Internet browsers:
At time of research, Tv-Plug-In did not install its browser plug-ins on Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, or Mozilla Firefox, however, it was bundled with other adware. Therefore, you are advised to remove all potentially unwanted browser add-ons from your Internet browsers.
Video showing how to remove potentially unwanted browser add-ons:
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 browser extensions, select these entries and click "Remove".
Optional method:
If you continue to have problems with removal of the ads by tv-plug-in, 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 "Tools" and click "Extensions". Locate all recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons, select these entries and click the trash can icon.
Optional method:
If you continue to have problems with removal of the ads by tv-plug-in, 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 "Extensions", in the opened window, remove all recently-installed suspicious browser plug-ins.
Optional method:
Computer users who have problems with ads by tv-plug-in 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, click Safari menu, and select Preferences....
In the opened window click Extensions, locate any recently installed suspicious extension, select it and click Uninstall.
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 upper-right corner of Microsoft Edge), select "Extensions". Locate all recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons and click "Remove" below their names.
Optional method:
If you continue to have problems with removal of the ads by tv-plug-in, 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:
Commonly, adware or potentially unwanted applications infiltrate Internet browsers through free software downloads. Note that the safest source for downloading free software is via developers' websites only. To avoid installation of adware, be very attentive when downloading and installing free software. When installing previously-downloaded free programs, choose the custom or advanced installation options – this step will reveal any potentially unwanted applications listed for installation together with your chosen free program.
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Outstanding!
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