Search.findthatsearch.com Redirect
Written by Tomas Meskauskas on (updated)
What is search.findthatsearch.com?
search.findthatsearch.com is a browser hijacker that claims to be an advanced, legitimate search engine. If installed, the browser homepage and default search engine options are assigned to search.findthatsearch.com It also differs from other popular search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo, since it has no logo, just a search bar and search button.
This search engine may therefore seem legitimate or even better than other popular search engines. In fact, it might not even display search results due to multiple redirects.
The search.findthatsearch.com browser hijacker targets browsers such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera, Safari or virtually any other working web browser. Once installed, it assigns search.findthatsearch.com as the home page and modifies browser settings.
It then changes how the web browser works and leads to various unwanted websites and delivers irrelevant search results when searching the Internet. It usually shows different top results than other popular search engines. These results are often sponsored links and ads.
The web browser opens search.findthatsearch.com when you launch the browser or a new tab, and you are not be able to revert these changes via browser settings. Note that once a search query is entered, search.findthatsearch.com redirects users to search.yahoo.com - a legitimate web search engine.
This makes search.findthatsearch.com useless. Furthermore, this browser hijacker has the ability to collect personal information such as search queries, visited websites, and so on - this may be transferred to third parties and later used to generate revenue.
Name | search.findthatsearch.com browser hijacker |
Threat Type | Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab |
Symptoms | Manipulated Internet browser(s) settings (homepage, default Internet search engine, new tab settings). User's are forced to visit 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 browsing tracking (potential privacy issues), displaying of unwanted ads, redirects to shady websites. |
Malware Removal (Windows) | To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. |
There are many fake search engines on the Internet including search.findthatsearch.com They might be slightly different, but the main purposes remain identical. They claim to be legitimate search engines, collect information about online behaviour, and generate revenue. None of these functions deliver any real value.
In fact, they simply cause issues by providing misleading redirects, unwanted ads, and burden the overall browsing experience. These sites can lead to other issues such as computer infections and increased vulnerability to hacker attacks.
How did search.findthatsearch.com install on my computer?
Browser hijackers such as the search.findthatsearch.com are usually installed/bundled with freeware or shareware programs. In most cases, this happens when users take the quickest route to install programs without paying attention, agreeing to various statements, and jumping through the software installation steps.
Also, agreeing to 'special offers' leading to unwanted software. Some browser hijackers are also installed through torrents or email attachments. These potentially unwanted programs (browser hijackers) often do not have any instructions on how to remove them and are thus difficult to eliminate.
How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?
To avoid installing potentially unwanted programs, pay close attention to how and what you are installing. Download and install software with care, especially if it is free. Do not jump through installation steps - study each checkbox, since they could indicate that you are accepting unwanted software. These checkboxes are often checked by default.
Try to avoid clicking various pop-up ads or suspicious "Download" and other similar buttons. Check custom or advanced options and avoid unofficial download sources and third-party downloaders. Today, it is becoming increasingly difficult to avoid unwanted applications, and careless behaviour or poor knowledge of the threats are the main reasons for computer infection.
Our advice is to pay attention and be very cautious. If your computer is already infected with browser hijackers, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate it.
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Quick menu:
- What is search.findthatsearch.com?
- STEP 1. Uninstall potentially unwanted applications using Control Panel.
- STEP 2. Remove search.findthatsearch.com redirect from Internet Explorer.
- STEP 3. Remove search.findthatsearch.com browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
- STEP 4. Remove search.findthatsearch.com homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.
- STEP 5. Remove search.findthatsearch.com redirect from Safari.
- STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.
search.findthatsearch.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 potentially unwanted applications, select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".
After uninstalling the potentially unwanted program that causes browser redirects to the search.findthatsearch.com website, scan your computer for any remaining unwanted components. To scan your computer, use recommended malware removal software.
search.findthatsearch.com homepage and default Internet search engine removal from Internet browsers:
Video showing how to remove browser hijackers:
Remove malicious add-ons from Internet Explorer:
Remove search.findthatsearch.com-related Internet Explorer add-ons:
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 such entries and click "Remove".
Fix Internet Explorer shortcut target:
This browser hijacker changes the "Target" field of the Internet Explorer shortcut. To fix this, locate the shortcut on your Desktop and click the right mouse button over it. In the opened menu, choose "Properties". In the opened window, locate the Target field and replace the whole text with browser's location (e.g., "C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe").
Change your homepage:
Click the "gear" icon (at the top right corner of Internet Explorer), select "Internet Options", in the opened window, remove hxxp://www.search.findthatsearch.com and enter your preferred domain, which will open every time you launch 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, then remove "search.findthatsearch.com".
Optional method:
If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.findthatsearch.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:
Remove search.findthatsearch.com-related Google Chrome extensions:
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, select these entries and click the trash can icon.
Fix Google Chrome shortcut target:
This browser hijacker modifies the "Target" field of the Google Chrome shortcut. To fix this, locate the shortcut on your Desktop and click the right mouse button over it. In the opened menu, choose "Properties". In the opened window, locate the Target field and replace whole text with browser's location (e.g., "C:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe").
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.search.findthatsearch.com) below the “Open a specific or set of pages” option. If present, click 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 "findthatsearch", 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 search.findthatsearch.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:
Remove search.findthatsearch.com-related Mozilla Firefox add-ons:
Click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window), select "Add-ons". Click on "Extensions", in the opened window, remove any recently-installed suspicious browser plug-ins.
Fix Mozilla Firefox shortcut target:
This browser hijacker changes the "Target" field of the Mozilla Firefox shortcut. To fix this, locate the shortcut on your Desktop and click the right mouse button over it. In the opened menu, choose "Properties". In the opened window, locate the Target field and replace whole text with browser's location (e.g., "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe").
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://www.search.findthatsearch.com and enter your preferred domain, which will open each time you start Mozilla Firefox.
Change 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: "findthatsearch.com"
Right-click on the found preferences and select "Reset" to restore default values.
Optional method:
Computer users who have problems with search.findthatsearch.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 search.findthatsearch.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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