Hohosearch.com virus - How to remove

Hohosearch.com virus is a browser hijacker — a type of program that takes over some web browser settings. It affects all kinds of search engines, both Windows and Mac OS. It infiltrates computers with the help of freeware programs from untrustworthy sites without warning you and, once inside, the hijacker sets your homepage and default search provider to Hohosearch.com. The program mainly bases its search results on sponsored websites and generates unrestricted ads, which helps to generate revenue for the crooks behind this.

Hohosearch.com is a functional but totally dishonest search engine that acts no different than Search.lokaleswetternt.com, Search.abcnews.io, Xtconnect.com by taking over the web browser and refusing to allow you to change your settings back to how you want them. The abundance of browser hijackers online shows that they’re effective in allowing some fraudsters to inject tons of unwanted ads in the infected browsers and making a living off of the ad revenue. This should not be happening — people shouldn’t have to spend days trying to regain control over their browser or else deal with a shady website being their homepage.

Some people have found it difficult to remove Hohosearch.com — even resetting the browser doesn’t work. To keep our readers safe and informed about the Hohosearch.com browser hijacker, we have prepared this article with details and elimination instructions which will come in handy when the threat strikes or your let you down.

Details on the Hohosearch.com browser hijacker:

Classification	Adware Browser hijacker PUP (potentially unwanted program)
Effects of the hijacker	Ads in web search results and other websites Malicious and low-quality ads Browsing data tracked by the hijacker Can’t change some browser settings
Causes	Hijackers downloaded alongside free programs from unreliable distributors Infected websites downloading malware
Remove the Hohosearch.com hijacker	Scan for and remove all malware (SpyHunter for PC, Combo Cleaner for Mac) Manually remove all suspicious browser add-ons and/or reset the browser Check and clear the settings that might cause browser redirects

What do you need to know about Hohosearch.com virus

Hohosearch.com virus was designed by cybercriminals in order to advertise commercial websites and increase their traffic. It looks like any other search provider, but if you start surfing World Wide Web using Hohosearch.com hijacker, you will see that it mainly displays sponsored websites despite what search query you enter, furthermore it will inject so many promotions and ads to websites that their regular layout will look distorted. Hohosearch.com engine is not able to provide reliable search results, hence this is one of the main reason users want to get rid of it. (See how malicious websites can infect you)

Moreover, the program may be promoting malicious websites and allow third parties to advertise directly to the victim, without having their content monitored. You never know if the pages it lists in your search results are safe to visit, or ads will not launch some ransomware attack. If you click on any of them, you will pose a risk to get infected. On top of that, Hohosearch.com virus will make your browser noticeably slower, so it will be literally impossible to browse the web.

Hohosearch.com virus has exclusive features, like many subdomains (ww17.hohosearch.com, ww1.hohosearch.com, ww38.hohosearch.com and r.hohosearch.com) and ability to utilize algorithms and social data (a lot of traffic from Youtube and Facebook), that makes it one of the leading infections of this kind and we cannot urge people enough to get rid of it as soon as presents itself before spreading any further. Hohosearch.com virus has been spotted to be active from March of 2016 and is still posing a threat until now, mostly attacking users from Indonesia, India, Russia, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe, but has been reported in other countries as well.

There is another malicious feature that must be taken into consideration if you think that Hohosearch.com browser virus is not that dangerous. That’s is data tracking. The Hohosearch.com hijacker, once it takes over your Edge, Mozilla or Chrome will start to record everything you enter into the search box, but also visited websites, entered banking and personal details, passwords and etc. While some of this gathered information will be made into statistics and used to improve targeted advertising, other data can end up in malicious hands, enabling identity theft, hacked accounts, and robbed bank accounts. Remember to use 2-step verification where possible to avoid these things.

What are the distribution Methods of Hohosearch.com virus

The Hohosearch.com virus is added to these browsers while you are installing other software from the Internet. Normally, it comes bundled with free media players, PDF creators,– download websites and distributors do this because they’re paid for each installation of the added software. If you don’t go for Custom installation and instead of following the installation steps you just hit the Next button, you can easily miss the indication about changing your homepage to Hohosearch.com, and this is by design.

That is why it is strongly recommended to be more careful with your new downloads. Always go through EULA documents and Privacy Policies to make sure that your selected app is not going to make you abide by some questionable terms and conditions. If you are displeased with the content you find in these documents, please rethink getting that program. Also, take a look at this article on how to avoid browser hijackers.

How to remove Hohosearch.com virus permanently

It is not a new factor that eliminating such browser hijacker like Hohosearch.com is a rather complexed task. There are two ways you can deal with it – manual and automatic. While manual removal by simply uninstalling Hoho Search engine from the browser should be sufficient, it isn’t always; sometimes, it just keeps coming back after each removal. Therefore for a proper and extra-thorough examination, we recommended that our visitor employs a security program of your choosing. It can get rid of malicious files and programs that are responsible for Hohosearch.com’s persistence in your browser.

We usually go with SpyHunter for PC, Combo Cleaner for Mac, or Malwarebytes, because they showed the fastest detection and after the removal did not leave behind files which could have reinfected the computer. Anti-malware programs are extremely easy to use and helpful for these victims who don’t have in-depth technical knowledge or simply don’t have extra time. Moreover, it is very possible that this parasite was successful in bringing more malware onto the compromised device, which can be spotted with the same anti-spyware.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Below we prepare guidelines on how to get rid of Hohosearch.com virus from any of your browsers. Make sure you eliminate it from all of them and restore their settings afterward. If the problem after termination persists, take a look at our other article, which has some additional removal tips, like cleaning Host files and DNS settings.

How to get rid of Hohosearch.com hijacker step-by-step

How to remove Ww17.hohosearch.com using Windows Control Panel

Many hijackers and adware like Ww1.hohosearch.com install some of their components as regular Windows programs as well as additional software. This part of malware can be uninstalled from the Control Panel. To access it, do the following.

• Start→Control Panel (older Windows) or press Windows Key→Search and enter Control Panel and then press Enter (Windows 8, Windows 10).
• Choose Uninstall Program (if you don't see it, click in the upper right next to "View by" and select Category).
• Go through the list of programs and select entries related to Ww38.hohosearch.com . You can click on "Name" or "Installed On" to reorder your programs and make R.hohosearch.com easier to find.
• Click the Uninstall button. If you're asked if you really want to remove the program, click Yes.
• In many cases anti-malware programs are better at detecting related parasites, thus I recommend installing Spyhunter to identify other programs that might be a part of this infection.

How to remove R.hohosearch.com from macOS

Delete Hohosearch.com virus from your applications.

1. Open Finder.
2. In the menu bar, click Go.
3. Select Applications from the dropdown.
4. Find the Ww17.hohosearch.com app.
5. Select it and right-click it (or hold the Ctrl and click the left mouse button).
6. In the dropdown, click Move to Bin/Trash. You might be asked to provide your login password.

TopHow To remove Hohosearch.com virus from Google Chrome:

• Click on the 3 horizontal lines icon on a browser toolbar and Select More Tools→Extensions
  
• Select all malicious extensions and delete them.
  
• Click on the 3 horizontal lines icon on a browser toolbar and Select Settings
  
• Select Manage Search engines
  
• Remove unnecessary search engines from the list
  
• Go back to settings. On Startup choose Open blank page (you can remove undesired pages from the set pages link too).
• If your homepage was changed, click on Chrome menu on the top right corner, select Settings. Select Open a specific page or set of pages and click on Set pages.
  
• Delete malicious search websites at a new Startup pages window by clicking “X” next to them.
  

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings

If you are still experiencing any issues related to R.hohosearch.com, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on a Chrome’s menu button (three horizontal lines) and select Settings.
• Scroll to the end of the page and click on theReset browser settings button.
  
• Click on the Reset button on the confirmation box.
  

If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program.

How To remove Hohosearch.com virus from Firefox:Top

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Mozilla window and select the “Add-ons” icon (Or press Ctrl+Shift+A on your keyboard).
  
• Go through Extensions and Addons list, remove everything Hohosearch.com virus related and items you do not recognise. If you do not know the extension and it is not made by Mozilla, Google, Microsoft, Oracle or Adobe then you probably do not need it.
  
• If your homepage was changed, click on the Firefox menu in the top right corner, select Options → General. Enter a preferable URL to the homepage field and click Restore to Default.
  

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings If you are still experiencing any issues related to Ww1.hohosearch.com, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Mozilla Firefox window. Click on the Help button.
  
• ChooseTroubleshooting Information on the Help menu.
  
• Click on theReset Firefox button.
  
• Click on the Reset Firefox button on the confirmation box. Mozilla Firefox will close and change the settings to default.
  

If the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program to identify malicious entries.

How to remove Hohosearch.com virus from Microsoft Edge:Top

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Microsoft Edge window. Select “Extensions”.

• Select all malicious extensions and delete them.

• Click on the three-dot menu on the browser toolbar and Select Settings

• Select Privacy and Services and scroll down. Press on Address bar.

• Choose Manage search engines.

• Remove unnecessary search engines from the list: open the three-dot menu and choose Remove.

• Go back to Settings. Open On start-up.
• Delete malicious search websites at Open specific page or pages by opening the three-dot menu and clicking Delete.

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings If you are still experiencing any issues related to Hohosearch.com virus, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings

• Click on Edge's menu button and select Settings. Click on the Reset Settings button on the left.
• Press the Restore settings to their default values option.

• Click on the Reset button on the confirmation box.

If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program.

How to remove Hohosearch.com virus from Safari:Top

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall Ww38.hohosearch.com and other suspicious extensions.
  
• If your homepage was changed, click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences and choose General tab. Enter preferable URL to the homepage field.
  

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings(older versions) If you are still experiencing any issues related to R.hohosearch.com, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Reset Safari…
  
• Select which options you want to reset (usually all of them come preselected) and click on the Reset button.
  

If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program.