Bazzsearch.com

Bazzsearch.com is undoubtedly a problematic search engine, so much so that we have classified it as a browser hijacker and urge you to remove it as soon as possible. In short, this hijacker’s objective is to redirect web traffic and generate advertising revenue from promotional links injected into its search results. Testing has shown that this alleged search engine processes the search queries through quite a few other browser hijackers and search engines, so from a practical point of view, it is rather slow and inconvenient, while from a security perspective it is simply unreliable.

Our research has yielded some interesting results. So let us begin with where it comes from and how it is disseminated. Bazzsearch.com is related to another browser hijacker known as Search.snapdo.com which was created by a company called Resoft Ltd based in New York City, New York, USA. This is an unknown company, but it is clear to see that it is in the online advertising business. We do not know if Bazzsearch.com is actually made by Resoft, but the possibility is there. As usual, there is not much information about a browser hijacker’s origins, because the developers purposefully do not provide it to avoid trouble.

Nevertheless, this hijacker is presented as legitimate because it is featured on the Chrome Web Store. The Chrome Web Store is a legitimate website dedicated for distributing browser extensions for Chrome, and it was set up by Google. However, shady add-ons and search engines manage to get on there because their illegitimacy is not always apparent. We are not suggesting that Bazzsearch.com is totally malicious. However, we believe that to its developers, the security of the user is not the top priority. As far as we know, this is the only distribution channel that is currently used and it is very effective because this hijacker has more than 55, 000 users worldwide. Note that this hijacker comes with a dedicated browser extension named Bazz Search.

If you decide to install Bazzsearch.com, then it will take control of your browser’s settings and modify them. As a result of installing its accompanying browser extension, this hijacker will replace Google Chrome’s search provider, new tab page, and homepage. Thus, it effectively has a search engine monopoly over your computer. Of course, you can uninstall the extension at any time, and all settings will be returned to normal. Moreover, we very much encourage getting rid of it because of the redirections that it performs.

Testing has shown that this hijacker redirects all search queries to Search.SafeFinder.com, which in turn can redirect you to Search.snapdo.com. It should be noted, however, that Search.SafeFinder.com uses Yahoo.com’s search engine to process the search queries, so Bazzsearch.com is unpractical because it uses services of other search engines and unsafe because it redirects to other known browser hijacking sites. On top of that, we have found that the end search results are packed with promotional links that are difficult to discern from the real search results. The search results might include links to unreliable websites that might contain download links to potentially unwanted programs and even malware, such as adware.

To make its advertising campaign more effective, the developers employ data collection. We have discovered that this hijacker can collect information that includes search and browsing history as well as IP addresses, Internet Service Provider information, software and hardware information, your approximate geographical location and so on. In short, it collects non-personal information that they are allowed to collect under law. However, since its promotions are highly questionable, you should not provide them with even the least bit important information.

All things considered, Bazzsearch.com is an undesirable search engine because it redirects search queries to other shady search engines that inject modified search results that promote questionable content. We think that this hijacker can jeopardize your computer’s security, so we recommend that you remove it as soon as you can using the instructions we have included below.

Remove Bazz Search from Chrome

1. Launch the browser.
2. Press Alt+F.
3. Click More tools and click Extensions.
4. Find and Remove Bazz Search.

Delete the files manually (alternative method)

1. Simultaneously press Windows+E keys on your keyboard.
2. Enter the following addresses in the address box of the Explorer window.
   • %LOCALAPPDATA%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Extensions\pinhfkamckbogjgmbmdkdebbbpnmlaef
   • %UserProfile%\Local Settings\Application Data\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Extensions\pinhfkamckbogjgmbmdkdebbbpnmlaef
3. Delete the contents of the folder.
4. Empty the Recycle Bin.
5. Done.