How to remove the Mongo Search browser hijacker

What is Mongo Search?

Mongo Search is a browser hijacker. Software within this category operates by making modifications to browser settings to promote fake search engines. Mongo Search promotes browser.mongosearch.net, also a bogus search engine. Mongo Search also adds the "Managed by your organization" feature to Google Chrome browsers.

This browser hijacker possesses data tracking capabilities, which are employed to track/collect information relating to browsing activity. Due to the dubious methods used to spread Mongo Search, it is classified as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA).

One of the dubious distribution techniques is via illegal software activation tools ("cracks"). Note that these tools often proliferate Trojans, ransomware and other malware.

Popular browsers such as Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox and others are typical targets of browser hijackers. After successful infiltration, they reassign the default search engine, homepage, and new tab/window URLs to the addresses of fake search engines.

Therefore, each search query typed into the URL bar and each new browser tab/window opened redirects to the promoted address. This is the case with Mongo Search, and hence the aforementioned actions redirect to browser.mongosearch.net. Rogue search engines have no real value to regular users, as they are typically unable to provide unique results.

They tend to redirect to (or cause redirection chains ending with) legitimate sites such as Google, Yahoo, Bing and others. The search engine of Mongo Search (browser.mongosearch.net) is no exception to this - it simply redirects to Google. Furthermore, browser hijackers can reset any user-changes made and/or restrict or deny access to browser settings.

Therefore, to recover the hijacked browser, the software affecting it must be removed. Furthermore, Mongo Search can track data. It can monitor browsing activity (URLs visited, pages viewed, search queries, etc.) and gather personal information extracted from it (IP addresses, geolocations and other details).

The collected data is often shared with third parties (potentially, cyber criminals), seeking to misuse it for profit. To summarize, the presence of data-tracking content on browsers/systems can lead to financial loss, serious privacy issues and even identity theft.

To ensure device integrity and user safety, you are strongly advised to eliminate all suspect applications and browser extensions/plug-ins immediately upon detection.

Threat Summary:

Name	Mongo Search
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Browser Extension(s)	Mongo Search, Mongo
Promoted URL	browser.mongosearch.net
Serving IP Address (browser.mongosearch.net)	195.154.44.201
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.

Maps Pro Hub, Mazy Search, Watch Sports Here and Easy Email Checker are some examples of other browser hijackers. They may seem legitimate and helpful tools with a wide variety of "useful" functionalities, however, the advertised features are seldom operational.

In fact, this applies to most PUAs. The only purpose of these unwanted apps is to generate revenue for the developers - to regular users, they are virtually useless and can instead cause serious issues. PUAs hijack browsers, force-open untrusted and malicious web pages, deliver intrusive advertisement campaigns and gather private information.

How did Mongo Search install on my computer?

Illegal activation ("cracking") tools are not the only way that PUAs are distributed. They are often downloaded/installed together with other products. This deceptive marketing tactic of pre-packing software with unwanted or malicious additions is called "bundling".

Rushing downloads/installations (e.g. ignoring terms, skipping steps, using pre-set options, etc.) increases the risk of unintentionally allowing dubious and/or bundled content onto the system. Some PUAs have "official" download sites. Intrusive ads proliferate these applications as well. Once clicked, they can execute scripts to stealthily download/install PUAs.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

All products should be researched before download/installation or purchase. Use official and verified download sources. Untrusted channels such as unofficial and free file-hosting (freeware) websites, Peer-to-Peer sharing networks (BitTorrent, Gnutella, eMule, etc.) and other third party downloaders commonly offer deceptive and bundled content.

You are advised to activate and update software with tools/functions provided by legitimate developers. Illegal activation tools ("cracks") and third party updaters must not be used, as they are often employed to proliferate PUAs and malware.

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

If you encounter these ads/redirects, check the system and remove all suspicious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins without delay. If your computer is already infected with Mongo Search, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate this browser hijacker.

Mongo Search browser hijacker distributed via illegal activation ("cracking") tool:

Mongo Search browser hijacker asking for various permissions:

Mongo Search browser hijacker managing the Google Chrome browser:

Appearance of the Mongo Search browser hijacker (GIF):

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Quick menu:

• What is Mongo Search?
• STEP 1. Uninstall Mongo Search application using Control Panel.
• STEP 2. Remove browser.mongosearch.net redirect from Internet Explorer.
• STEP 3. Remove Mongo Search browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove browser.mongosearch.net homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.
• STEP 5. Remove browser.mongosearch.net redirect from Safari.
• STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.

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

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

Mongo Search 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://browser.mongosearch.net 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 "Mongo Search".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the browser.mongosearch.net 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 "Mongo Search" 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 "Mongo Search" (or simply "Mongo"), look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.browser.mongosearch.net) 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 "browser.mongosearch.net", 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 browser.mongosearch.net 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 "Mongo Search", 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 "Mongo Search", remove hxxp://browser.mongosearch.net 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 browser.mongosearch.net 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 browser.mongosearch.net 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.

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