Internet-start.net - How to remove

Internet-start.net is the website that’s promoted by the Internet-Start browser extension. This website delivers Web search results collected by Google in a novel way but modified to seemingly show mode ads. This extension can provide value to the users but it’s promoted by rogue adware sites and it can collect users’ private information.

Internet-start.net is similar to other alternative search engines, like Searchletter, Opxa.xyz, or ESearch.

There are good things about this search engine. It displays stripped-down previews of each site before you visit it. This makes use of the white space usually present in most search sites.

However, I’m here to outline some of the issues with the Internet-start.net website and the Internet-Start browser extension. After all, it can be considered to be a browser hijacker:

• It modifies the search settings using a browser extension.
• It modifies search results of another search engine by displaying an unusually high volume of ads.
• It wants to be able to see and change all the content on every website.
• It’s not upfront with its monetization model and doesn’t provide its own privacy policy. For an extension that can see and change your data on any website, that’s concerning.
• It uses deceptive ads and shady ad-networks to spread.

It’s likely that some people have installed Internet-Start despite never agreeing to it. That’s a big issue. You might be better off uninstalling Internet-start.net from your browser:

Characteristics	Search results in new.internet-start.net Internet-start.net as your home page
Installation	Bad ads Freeware bundling Manual installation
Classification	Adware Browser hijacker Potentially unwanted program (PUP)
Remove Internet-start.net	Remove suspicious programs (Combo Cleaner (Mac), SpyHunter (Windows)) Remove the Internet-Start browser extension Restore the browser settings to the original values

How is Internet-start.net installed?

There are two things that could explain why your web search queries are being sent to Internet-start.net: either your browser settings were changed to set new.internet-start.net as your main search engine, or the Internet-Start browser extension was installed.

Visits to Internet-start.net are correlated with visits to other custom search engines, as well as dangerous websites of the type that spread malware quite often. It’s likely that Internet-start.net used the same types of ads (random redirects and new browser windows that happen on shady websites like video-to-mp3 converters and “free” streaming sites) that other browser hijackers use. This is concerning because those ads and those websites spread serious malware, not just quirky browser hijackers.

This reminds me of another suspicious thing about Internet-start.net: for an extension that has over a million users, to only have 20 ratings and reviews is ridiculous and absurd. Other alternative search engines with a comparable number of users have far more reviews in the Chrome Web store. This shows that people don’t generally seek out Internet-start.net and that it doesn’t spread via word-of-mouth. Instead, ads are used to promote it.

This is unfortunate because the method of deceptive ads is used by other potentially unwanted programs — the sort of distribution that leads people to install programs they don’t want or even know about by using dishonesty and manipulation.

That’s why Internet-start.net being installed could indicate that you need to be more careful online:

• Update your software, especially your anti-malware program. Only an up-to-date program can reliably detect new threats.
• Consider using real-time protection. If a malicious website was stopped form loading or a dangerous file was stopped form executing before they can cause harm, that saves a lot of trouble.
• Remember to use 2-factor authentication where possible. If a malicious extension steals your passwords or other valuable data, don’t make it easy for criminals to hack your online accounts.

How to remove Internet-start.net

If you like Internet-start.net and want to continue using it, there’s no immediate danger in that. Though be aware of the various risks (it can literally see anything you do on any website and it doesn’t provide its own privacy policy) and make sure that your device is as secure as it can be (updates, strong passwords, etc.).

If you want to remove it, then that should be very easy. You only need to check your list of browser extensions and check your search settings.

It’s advisable to scan your computer with some anti-malware program (Combo Cleaner (macOS), SpyHunter (Windows)) in order to make sure that you haven’t got any other suspicious or potentially unwanted software installed. Knowing that they all spread the same ways, if you had Internet-start.net on your computer, you could also have other PUPs.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Remove Internet-start.net Search Redirect

How to remove Internet-start.net using Windows Control Panel

Many hijackers and adware like Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net . You can click on "Name" or "Installed On" to reorder your programs and make Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net from macOS

Delete Internet-start.net from your applications.

1. Open Finder.
2. In the menu bar, click Go.
3. Select Applications from the dropdown.
4. Find the Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net, 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 Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net, 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 Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net, 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 Internet-start.net from Safari:Top

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall Internet-start.net 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 Internet-start.net, 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.