Remove redirects to and from free-coupons.network

Free-coupons[.]network redirect removal instructions

What is free-coupons[.]network?

free-coupons[.]network is one of many rogue websites designed to feed users with dubious content and redirect them to other rogue sites. It is virtually identical to goodmedia.me, seplumming.pro, checking-your-browser.com, and many others. Many users visit this site inadvertently, as they are redirected by potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) or intrusive ads generated by other rogue sites. PUAs often infiltrate computers without users' consent and, as well as causing redirects, deliver intrusive advertisements and gather sensitive data.

After infiltrating computers, unwanted apps start to open new browser tabs/windows and redirect to free-coupons[.]network. This site then redirects users to other dubious sites or presents them with dubious content (or both). The behavior of free-coupons[.]network depends on the visitor's geolocation, which is determined by checking the IP address. In any case, users might end up seeing malicious content. Thus, redirects to and from free-coupons[.]network can result in various system infections. As mentioned above, PUAs also deliver coupons, banners, pop-ups, and other similar intrusive advertisements that also redirect to rogue sites and might even run scripts designed to download/install unwanted applications. Clicking them can thus lead to various malware infections. Note that PUAs deliver ads using tools that enable placement of third party graphical content on any site. Therefore, they often conceal underlying content, thereby significantly diminishing the browsing experience. PUAs also record data relating to browsing activity. The list of collected data types typically includes (but is not limited to) IP addresses, website URLs visited, pages viewed, search queries, and other similar information. Collected data usually includes personal details that third parties (cyber criminals) misuse to generate revenue. In this way, PUAs can cause privacy issues, including identity theft. We strongly recommend that you eliminate all of these applications immediately.

Threat Summary:

Name	free-coupons.network pop-up
Threat Type	Push notifications ads, Unwanted ads, Pop-up ads
Serving IP Address	213.227.145.147
Observed Domains	1sgao.free-coupons[.]network, 7w9sq.free-coupons[.]network, 8ge7u.free-coupons[.]network, aaxmc.free-coupons[.]network, bxvpi.free-coupons[.]network, cema9.free-coupons[.]network, cggxh.free-coupons[.]network, fitrm.free-coupons[.]network
Symptoms	Seeing advertisements not originating from the sites you are browsing. Intrusive pop-up ads. Decreased Internet browsing speed.
Distribution Methods	Deceptive pop-up ads, potentially unwanted applications (adware)
Damage	Decreased computer performance, browser tracking - privacy issues, possible additional malware infections.
Malware Removal (Windows)	To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Malwarebytes. ▼ Download Malwarebytes To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Malwarebytes. 14 days free trial available.

Research shows that all PUAs are very similar. By offering "useful features", they attempt to give the impression of legitimacy. Few PUAs provide the functions promised. They have just one purpose: to generate revenue for the developers by causing redirects, gathering information, and delivering advertisements.

How did adware install on my computer?

PUAs have official download websites, however, most are proliferated using intrusive advertising and "bundling" (stealth installation of third party applications together with regular software). Developers know that users often rush download/installation processes and skip steps. Therefore, "bundled" apps are concealed behind "Custom/Advanced" settings (or other sections) of these procedures. Furthermore, many users click advertisements and skip download/installation steps, often leading to inadvertent installation of rogue apps.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications?

To prevent this situation, be very cautious when browsing the internet and downloading/installing software. Developers invest many resources into intrusive ad design, thereby making them seem legitimate. Once clicked, however, they redirect to dubious websites such as gambling, pornography, adult dating, surveys, etc. - these are just some examples from many. If you encounter ads/redirects, remove all suspicious applications and browser plug-ins immediately. Carefully study each window of the download/installation dialogs using the "Custom" or "Advanced" settings. Opt-out of additionally-included programs and decline offers to download/install them. Avoid using third party downloaders/installers, since most are monetized using the "bundling" method. Software should be downloaded from official sources only, preferably using direct download links. The key to computer safety is caution. If your computer is already infected with rogue applications, we recommend running a scan with Malwarebytes for Windows to automatically eliminate them.

Appearance of free-coupons[.]network website (GIF):

IMPORTANT NOTE! This deceptive site asks to enable web browser notifications.

Therefore, before commencing, perform these steps:

Google Chrome (PC):

• Click the Menu button (three dots) on the right upper corner of the screen
• Select "Settings", scroll down to the bottom and click "Advanced"
• Scroll down to the "Privacy and security" section, select "Content settings" and then "Notifications"
• Click three dots on the right hand side of each suspicious URL and click "Block" or "Remove" (if you click "Remove" and visit the malicious site once more, it will ask to enable notifications again)

Google Chrome (Android):

• Click on the Menu button (three dots) on the right upper corner of the screen and click "Settings"
• Scroll down, click on "Site settings" and then "Notifications"
• In the opened window, locate all suspicious URLs and click on them one-by-one
• Select "Notifications" in the "Permissions" section and set the toggle button to "OFF"

Mozilla Firefox:

• Click the Menu button (three bars) on the right upper corner of the screen
• Select "Options" and click on "Privacy & Security" in the toolbar on the left hand side of the screen
• Scroll down to the "Permissions" section and click the "Settings" button next to "Notifications"
• In the opened window, locate all suspicious URLs, click the drop-down menu and select "Block"

Internet Explorer:

• Click the Gear button on the right upper corner of the IE window
• Select "Internet options"
• Select the "Privacy" tab and click "Settings" under "Pop-up Blocker" section
• Select suspicious URLs under and remove them one by one by clicking the "Remove" button

Microsoft Edge:

• Click the menu button (three dots) on the right upper corner of the Edge window
• Scroll down, find and click "Settings"
• Scroll down again and click "View advanced settings"
• Click "Manage" under "Website permissions"
• Click the switch under each suspicious website

Safari (Mac):

• Click "Safari" button on the left upper corner of the screen and select "Preferences..."
• Select the "Websites" tab and then select "Notifications" section on the left pane
• Check for suspicious URLs and apply the "Deny" option for each

Instant automatic malware removal: Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced computer skills. Malwarebytes is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
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Quick menu:

• What is free-coupons[.]network?
• STEP 1. Uninstall adware applications using Control Panel.
• STEP 2. Remove adware from Internet Explorer.
• STEP 3. Remove rogue plug-ins from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove adware-type extensions from Mozilla Firefox.
• STEP 5. Remove malicious extensions from Safari.
• STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.

Adware removal:

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.

Windows XP users:

Click Start, choose Settings and click Control Panel. Locate and click Add or Remove Programs.

Windows 10 and Windows 8 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.

Mac 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 potentially unwanted applications, select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".

After uninstalling the potentially unwanted application that causes free-coupons[.]network redirects, scan your computer for any remaining unwanted components or possible malware infections. To scan your computer, use recommended malware removal software.

Remove adware from 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 free-coupons.network pop-up, 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 all recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons and remove them.

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the free-coupons.network pop-up, 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 free-coupons.network pop-up 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 free-coupons.network pop-up, 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.

Removal assistance:
If you are experiencing problems while trying to remove free-coupons.network pop-up from your computer, please ask for assistance in our malware support forum.

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