How To Remove Smart Search (Mac)

Learn Detailed Guidelines To Delete Smart Search (Mac)

Smart Search is technically found as a vicious computer that can be classified under PUP or adware or a browser hijacker developed to attack mainly Mac OS based computers. But, this never means that other OS users are protected against such terms and they should be aware of these malware impacts as well. Getting somehow infiltrated, this kind of malware is empowered to take over all active browsers on Windows through which it makes the whole online sessions as well as offline sessions compromised without any prior notice. If you are also facing such impacts on your Mac, then you must learn some guidelines to know how to sort out such issues completely.

Summarized detail of Smart Search

Name: Smart Search
Type: Browser hijacker, redirect virus
Symptoms: Modified homepage, new tab and search engine defaults, eruption of commercial pop ups, and so on.
Description: Smart Search is just a redirect virus or browser hijacker that mainly gets intruded on computer without any prior notice, and impacts all browser settings to cause redirects or pop up based issues throughout the day.
Distribution: Spam/junk email attachments, freeware or shareware installer packages, malicious links or ads, and many more.
Removal: To learn detailed information to detect and remove Smart Search from compromised computer, get through the instructions discussed under this article.

What is Smart Search? Detailed information

Similar to many other browser hijacker or redirect virus infections, Smart Search is a newly identified browser hijacker which can also be referred as a PUP or potentially unwanted application. Researchers have noticed this app often get installed on targeted computers through a third party flash player updater which claims to offer free updates, but is actually a fake or rogue application meant to circulate malware codes. Getting installed, it affects all browsers to alter their critical values for settings like homepage, new tab, and search engine defaults. Mostly, some unreliable search engines are promoted through such modifications and users are tricked to open those web locations and visit those as well to keep interacting with such online elements.

Technically, Smart Search is found capable to infect and affect almost all possible browser variants including chrome, Firefox, Opera, Safari, IE, Edge, and so on. So, no matters what possible browser you are using to access your web sessions, you will end up to face problems throughout the day due to altered values for search engine, and so on. Every time you try to access the web sessions, you will be enforced to see an unreliable search engine that will show you promotional contents or pages throughout the day. Also, a number of pop up eruptions will take place to show nasty or shady promotional contents for being clicked.

Although, browser hijackers like Smart Search are said to be not enough typical like trojans or ransomware objects, still its impacts on computer may lead victims to suffer high potential losses. The malware actually gets installed, following which it alters a number of internal settings to make its modifications unidentified. Also, it creates some hidden loopholes or backdoor, through which possible data and values can easily be stolen from compromised computers. This is why, the detection and complete removal of Smart Search is mandatory to be accomplished sooner to avoid serious losses further.

How Smart Search get installed on computer?

Although, none of the victims will intend to have their machine affected by PUPs or adware like Smart Search, still such things takes place without any prior notice. So, a user end up obtaining such infectious objects by clicking through malicious online links, advertisements, downloading/installing some vicious objects, surfing unsafe web locations, and many more. The criminals actually utilize a number of possible measures to embed their malware codes on global basis and trick users to interact with them. Once the interaction is made, the malicious code is somehow downloaded and installed to activate Smart Search and its negative impacts.

Methods to delete Smart Search from computers?

Since the impacts caused by Smart Search on a targeted machine is always disastrous, it should not be entertained on compromised computers for a long term. However, its removal from an infected machine is still not easy unless some effective tricks or guidelines are followed properly. If you are looking for such guidelines or methods, we suggest you to check out the instructions mentioned through this article.

Antimalware Details And User Guide

Click Here For Windows Click Here For Mac

Important Note: This malware asks you to enable the web browser notifications. So, before you go the manual removal process, execute these steps.

Google Chrome (PC)

• Go to right upper corner of the screen and click on three dots to open the Menu button
• Select “Settings”. Scroll the mouse downward to choose “Advanced” option
• Go to “Privacy and Security” section by scrolling downward and then select “Content settings” and then “Notification” option
• Find each suspicious URLs and click on three dots on the right side and choose “Block” or “Remove” option

Google Chrome (Android)

• Go to right upper corner of the screen and click on three dots to open the menu button and then click on “Settings”
• Scroll down further to click on “site settings” and then press on “notifications” option
• In the newly opened window, choose each suspicious URLs one by one
• In the permission section, select “notification” and “Off” the toggle button

Mozilla Firefox

• On the right corner of the screen, you will notice three dots which is the “Menu” button
• Select “Options” and choose “Privacy and Security” in the toolbar present in the left side of the screen
• Slowly scroll down and go to “Permission” section then choose “Settings” option next to “Notifications”
• In the newly opened window, select all the suspicious URLs. Click on the drop-down menu and select “Block”

Internet Explorer

• In the Internet Explorer window, select the Gear button present on the right corner
• Choose “Internet Options”
• Select “Privacy” tab and then “Settings” under the “Pop-up Blocker” section
• Select all the suspicious URLs one by one and click on the “Remove” option

Microsoft Edge

• Open the Microsoft Edge and click on the three dots on the right corner of the screen to open the menu
• Scroll down and select “Settings”
• Scroll down further to choose “view advanced settings”
• In the “Website Permission” option, click on “Manage” option
• Click on switch under every suspicious URL

Safari (Mac):

• On the upper right side corner, click on “Safari” and then select “Preferences”
• Go to “website” tab and then choose “Notification” section on the left pane
• Search for the suspicious URLs and choose “Deny” option for each one of them

Manual Steps to Remove Smart Search:

Remove the related items of Smart Search using Control-Panel

Windows 7 Users

Click “Start” (the windows logo at the bottom left corner of the desktop screen), select “Control Panel”. Locate the “Programs” and then followed by clicking on “Uninstall Program”

Windows XP Users

Click “Start” and then choose “Settings” and then click “Control Panel”. Search and click on “Add or Remove Program’ option

Windows 10 and 8 Users:

Go to the lower left corner of the screen and right-click. In the “Quick Access” menu, choose “Control Panel”. In the newly opened window, choose “Program and Features”

Mac OSX Users

Click on “Finder” option. Choose “Application” in the newly opened screen. In the “Application” folder, drag the app to “Trash”. Right click on the Trash icon and then click on “Empty Trash”.

In the uninstall programs window, search for the PUAs. Choose all the unwanted and suspicious entries and click on “Uninstall” or “Remove”.

After you uninstall all the potentially unwanted program causing Smart Search issues, scan your computer with an anti-malware tool for any remaining PUPs and PUAs or possible malware infection. To scan the PC, use the recommended the anti-malware tool.

How to Remove Adware (Smart Search) from Internet Browsers

Delete malicious add-ons and extensions from IE

Click on the gear icon at the top right corner of Internet Explorer. Select “Manage Add-ons”. Search for any recently installed plug-ins or add-ons and click on “Remove”.

Additional Option

If you still face issues related to Smart Search removal, you can reset the Internet Explorer to its default setting.

Windows XP users: Press on “Start” and click “Run”. In the newly opened window, type “inetcpl.cpl” and click on the “Advanced” tab and then press on “Reset”.

Windows Vista and Windows 7 Users: Press the Windows logo, type inetcpl.cpl in the start search box and press enter.  In the newly opened window, click on the “Advanced Tab” followed by “Reset” button.

For Windows 8 Users: Open IE and click on the “gear” icon. Choose “Internet Options”

Select the “Advanced” tab in the newly opened window

Press on “Reset” option

You have to press on the “Reset” button again to confirm that you really want to reset the IE

Remove Doubtful and Harmful Extension from Google Chrome

Go to menu of Google Chrome by pressing on three vertical dots and select on “More tools” and then “Extensions”. You can search for all the recently installed add-ons and remove all of them.

Optional Method

If the problems related to Smart Search still persists or you face any issue in removing, then it is advised that your reset the Google Chrome browse settings. Go to three dotted points at the top right corner and choose “Settings”. Scroll down bottom and click on “Advanced”.

At the bottom, notice the “Reset” option and click on it.

In the next opened window, confirm that you want to reset the Google Chrome settings by click on the “Reset” button.

Remove Smart Search plugins (including all other doubtful plug-ins) from Firefox Mozilla

Open the Firefox menu and select “Add-ons”. Click “Extensions”.  Select all the recently installed browser plug-ins.

Optional Method

If you face problems in Smart Search removal then you have the option to rese the settings of Mozilla Firefox.

Open the browser (Mozilla Firefox) and click on the “menu” and then click on “Help”.

Choose “Troubleshooting Information”

In the newly opened pop-up window, click “Refresh Firefox” button

The next step is to confirm that really want to reset the Mozilla Firefox settings to its default by clicking on “Refresh Firefox” button.

Remove Malicious Extension from Safari

Open the Safari and go to its “Menu” and select “Preferences”.

Click on the “Extension” and select all the recently installed “Extensions” and then click on “Uninstall”.

Optional Method

Open the “Safari” and go menu. In the drop-down menu, choose “Clear History and Website Data”.

In the newly opened window, select “All History” and then press on “Clear History” option.

Delete Smart Search (malicious add-ons) from Microsoft Edge

Open Microsoft Edge and go to three horizontal dot icons at the top right corner of the browser. Select all the recently installed extensions and right click on the mouse to “uninstall”

Optional Method

Open the browser (Microsoft Edge) and select “Settings”

Next steps is to click on “Choose what to clear” button

Click on “show more” and then select everything and then press on “Clear” button.

Conclusion

In most cases, the PUPs and adware gets inside the marked PC through unsafe freeware downloads. It is advised that you should only choose developers website only while downloading any kind of free applications.  Choose custom or advanced installation process so that you can trace the additional PUPs listed for installation along with the main program.