ForSearch.net

ForSearch.net is a potentially risky search website that seems to mainly target Vietnamese computer users. Although we have seen decreasing traffic on this server in the past weeks, you may still get infected with this potential threat source. Having no official channels through which to spread on the web, this browser hijacker is mostly distributed in free software bundles that may bring several malware infections on board. This clearly means that this hijacker may not be the only and the most dangerous threat necessarily on your system. Using this search website could lead to further infections and online scams thanks to the questionable content it may present to you. We believe that the sooner you remove ForSearch.net from your browsers, the more chance you have to restore order on your system to make it secure again. Please read our full report if you want to learn more about how you can avoid similar attacks and what the presence of this browser hijacker may mean to your system.

As we have already mentioned, you cannot find a website on the net that promotes this search page as a downloadable browser extension or application. This already makes this search website suspicious. And, it only gets worse when you learn that this infection is mainly spread in free software packages, which usually means a bunch of malicious software installers packed together. This is why it is essential that you always be alert while installing bundles. Even if a software package seems innocent and legitimate, it may try to install questionable programs and browser hijackers. There is generally a step in the installation wizard at the beginning that is supposed to reveal the content and changes that are about to be made if you do not deselect them; since these are displayed as selected checkboxes. Unfortunately, still a lot of users ignore or overlook this step. It is also possible that this option is only available when you choose the custom installation option as schemers try to hide this from unsuspecting users.

What you may not be aware of is that it is really simple to infect your machine with such an unfortunate package; all it takes is a click on corrupt third-party content. This content can be an advertisement, a fake software update message, a fake button, a fake notification, which are all basically third-party advertisements but they do not all appear to be commercial ads. This is why it is dangerous to visit unfamiliar file-sharing websites, for instance, because these are infamous for hosting unsafe third-party content, such as ads and fake download and navigational buttons. You should always stick with official websites whenever you want to download software or updates because you can easily click on ads that may drop a malicious package onto your system. If you install a whole bundle, you could let browser hijackers, bad toolbars, ad-supported programs, or even ransomware infections on board. The only way for you to be certain about the level of your system being infected is to use a proper online malware scanner that you can trust after you delete ForSearch.net from your browsers.

When this browser hijacker is installed, it sets forsearch.net/home as your homepage in your Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Internet Explorer browsers. Microsoft Edge seems to be unaffected by this infection. This search site offers you three options made available by radio buttons below the search box, including ForSearch, Google, and Bing. Below these buttons you may also find third-party banner ads that you should not trust because these might redirect you to malicious websites. We do not recommend that you use this site for any web search because you may end up on modified and customized search results pages, including the fake Bing page (forsearch.net/?FORM=Z9FD1) this browser hijacker uses. Since this hijacker may collect information about your browsing habits, you could be introduced to customized content that could be risky to engage with since cyber crooks can easily take advantage of this and take you to their malicious pages. Since the web is full of fake websites run by criminals to scam inexperienced users online, we do not think it is a good idea to keep such an infection on board. If you are ready to act, let us tell you how you can delete ForSearch.net from your computer.

In fact, you have a couple of options to get rid of this search site. First, you can use our instructions below this article that explains how to remove this browser hijacker manually. Second, you can use your browser settings to change the homepage URL address. Finally, you can always use a decent anti-malware program like SpyHunter if you do not feel skilled enough to detect and erase malicious programs. It also helps you keep your system less vulnerable if you update all your software and drivers regularly, including your security software of course. It is just as important to keep away from shady websites and clicking on questionable third-party ads.

Remove ForSearch.net from browsers

Mozilla Firefox

1. Press Win+E to open File Explorer.
2. Open %AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[your profile] directory.
3. Edit the prefs.js file in Notepad.
4. Find user_pref("browser.startup.homepage", "http://forsearch.net ") string and change the homepage URL address.
5. Save and close the file.

Google Chrome

1. Press Win+E to open File Explorer.
2. Open %LocalAppData%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default director.
3. Delete Preferences, Secure Preferences, and Web Data files.
4. Empty your Recycle Bin.

Internet Explorer

1. Press Win+Q and enter regedit. Press the Enter key.
2. Find HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\Start Page value name and change the value data for a homepage you prefer.
3. Find HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchScopes\{0633EE93-D776-472f-A0FF-E1416B8B2E3A} and delete the value data of these value names: FaviconURL, FaviconURLFallback, TopResultURL, and URL
4. Close the registry editor.