The Coupon Store

It is very common that users have to fight applications they are not familiar with. Take The Coupon Store, for example. This potentially unwanted application does not look like something dangerous. However, it can still enter your computer when you expect it the least. Of course, it cannot infect you like a genuine malware program, but it might still get there accidentally. When you encounter unwanted programs on your computer, it is necessary to remove them immediately. The same applies to The Coupon Store, as well. Hence, to protect your PC and your personal information from potential exploitation, please terminate this program.

In a sense, we could categorize this application in many ways. It could be an adware application or a browser extension. Some users might also say that it has certain browser hijacker qualities. However, the fact that users download and install this program themselves makes it easier to make up our minds. Not to mention that by itself, The Coupon Store is not malicious at all. It is the third parties that can make use of the program that causes the main concern for us. Yet, in order to avoid these potential security issues, it is for the best to get rid of the cause, and we mean The Coupon Store, of course.

Let us a take a closer look at the program’s official homepage, to find out more about the origins of this application. The official homepage is located at thecouponstore.co. Also, when we deal with adware applications, we often find that their homepages are just empty shells that do not have the director download link. The Coupon Store, on the other hand, has a working “install now” button. Clicking the button would add the extension to your browser, thus successfully changing your main browser settings.

Aside from adding a new extension to your browser, this program also changes your homepage and new tab settings. The program sets thecouponstore.co as your default homepage. That is definitely highly annoying and unnecessary. Also, the application displays several buttons that should allow you to access the most recent coupons and discount offers. These buttons are LATEST COUPONS, POPULAR COUPONS, and TODAY’S COUPONS. Clicking these buttons redirects you to third-party websites, such as coupons.com or retailmenot.com. The question is, however, whether you really need a third-party application to redirect you to such websites, when you can access them yourself if need be.

The official homepage for this application is very eager to convince you that The Coupon Store is probably your best buddy when it comes to online shopping. It says that the application will save your time and money, as “the very best coupon websites will be on your new tab page.” You will also have a variety of options, getting “a large variety of coupons to suit all your needs.” What’s more, the program supposedly comes with additional features, offering you “a powerful search experience.” It even has weather and time updates, so what is there not to love?

Of course, everything might seem ideal “on paper,” but when this application arrives at your computer uninvited, it is more than just frustrating. The problem is that The Coupon Store needs to deal with third-party content to provide you with the most “relevant” coupon offers. Also, as far as the search function is concerned, this application may display modified Yahoo! Search results, instead of showing something reliable. It also would not be too far-fetched to say that cyber criminals could make use of The Coupon Store to distribute their malicious content. Of course, the application does not intend to infect you with malware, but it cannot prevent cyber criminals from exploiting it.

Having this worst-case scenario in mind (no matter how rare it might be), you should terminate all the potential threats from your system at once. Luckily, The Coupon Store will only affect the Chrome and Firefox browsers, so you will not have to deal with the Internet Explorer.

You can delete The Coupon Store manually because we have prepared the instructions below. However, if you feel that manual freeware removal is not your piece of cake, you can rely on a licensed antispyware tool of your choice. Using a computer security tool for freeware removal will also help you protect your system from other similar intruders.

How to Remove the Coupon Store

Chrome

1. Press Win+R and type %LocalAppData%.
2. Click OK and go to Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Extensions.
3. Delete the lppphkdihepdibjclibocgniljgmmhmd folder.

Firefox

1. Press Win+R and the Run prompt will open.
2. Enter %AppData% into the Open box and click OK.
3. Go to Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\[User ID]\extensions.
4. Delete the @thecouponstore.xpi file.