PCH Search Engine - How to remove

PCH Search aka Newsearch.pch.com / Search.pch.com / Search & Win is a search engine of Publisher Clearing House – a marketing company. This company started in 1953 and is a legitimate one. However, the Search.pch.com search engine is a bit annoying and not really beneficial to the end user. This is for 2 reasons:

• First, It is powered by InspeSearch/InfoSpace, which is infamous for distributing browser hijackers, showing spam ads and redirects.
• Secondly, the search engine may take yours over without asking for a separate and clearly stated permission.

About PCH Search:

Threat type	Potentially unwanted program, browser hijacker.
How PCH Search works	It’s an ad-supported search engine that can enter you into sweepstakes.
Problems and issues	Ads on Search.pch.com and other PCH sites may lead to malicious sites and spam, Unrealistic expectations of chances to win leading people to disappointment.
How to remove PCH Search	Remove apps and browser extensions related to Search.pch.com, check your device with anti-malware tools (Malwarebytes, Spyhunter for PC, Combo Cleaner for Mac, etc.).

How PHC Search engine works

Ad-supported search engine

PCH Search Engine is a program that is supposed to improve your search results and at the same time give you a chance to win some prizes just by using it. It is heavily ad-supported. Using the Internet with PCH Search installed can be very irritating:

• regular popups,
• promotional links in the search results,
• spam email,
• constant encouragement for more engagement.

The services that take place via the Search.pch.com search platform are still going strong. Its Search sweepstakes aren’t currently available outside the United States, but the Search & Win engine is still very popular within the country.

Lots of people are using PCH Search to search for information – and getting served ads by Affftrack, Taboola, OpenX, ClixSense, and other ad-networks.

Search.pch.com generates search results with a surprising amount of advertisements. Just look at the screenshot that we took: the site contains a bunch of ads that are so poorly labeled that it almost looks like they’re genuine results.

Sometimes, people have their whole browser taken over by PCH Search. Their home page and the new tab page are replaced with Search.pch.com. This is the result of a certain browser extension being installed.

Prizes and advertising spam

PCH is famous for its sweepstakes. As a result, people feel excited about their chances to win with Search.pch.com. They try hard to get more tokens by using the Search.pch.com engine, playing PCH games, and buying items from PCH. Then they become disappointed when they do not win.

While it is entirely possible to win with Pch.com, the chances are very small (Thebalance).

Still, Pch.com service and its Search.pch.com browser hijacker have received negative reviews from users who felt misled, as well as users who claim that malicious advertisements attacked their phones or computers after using Search.pch.com (Trustpilot.com).

Search.pch.com has been accused of redirecting clients to spam websites, tracking cookies, and downright fraudulent domains that engage in a variety of scams. Be very careful of Search.pch.com as it can expose you to potentially unwanted and even dangerous ads.

Sure, people engage in sweepstakes voluntarily, but the problem with Search.pch.com is that many of its users have been exposed to spam emails. This makes them feel as if they are walking through a minefield: one wrong click can infect them with viruses. Take a look at the negative feedback someone has left:

“Do NOT TRUST PCH site!!!!
Before ‘joining’ PCH on my Yahoo account I had received perhaps ONE piece of SPAM per 2 or 3 months. Now I get 3 or 4 per/DAY! Do NOT be suckered into this preditory site.
The chance of ever winning anything from these predators is maybe 1 in 100 million billion chances!!!
DO NOT TRUST PCH AT ALL !!!!
Dump PCH if you were suckered in to them (like me)
THEY ARE DANGEROUS!!”

“This company is uses deceitful advertisement and they hid the truth in fine print. They just want to sell you magazines. You will be really really lucky if you win money from them.”

“Usually arrives at my inbox via Doubleclick spam and no other way, hardly reputable though I don’t suppose they worry too much where their ‘leads’ come from.”

“I was on it everyday… ended up w Trojan and adware and spyeware virus! They just sell u off to 3rd partys .. ringing my phone off the hook! It just fills my email up w spam … hundreds and I have to individually unscribe to them all to stop them! PCH is a no!”.

It is important to note that PCH scams do exist out there. These are scams where malicious actors pretend to be PCH and then ask people to pay in order to receive their (nonexistent) prizes. In such a situation, you should always confirm with PCH whether you have really won.

How PHC Search gets installed

Freeware and browser extensions

PCH Search Engine appears on your computer if it’s been installed as an app or if your browser settings have been changed. If you did not install it yourself, then some other freeware may have done it for you.

We are not aware of malware distributing the hijacker actively, though this can not be ruled out.

You should be very careful when you are downloading anything to your computer in order to avoid programs like this one. Always do some research to make sure you are downloading a legitimate program and check what extra applications you are offered during installations of the main software – and refuse them.

Advertising

As PCH is famous for its sweepstakes, people install its applications deliberately, hoping that they’ll win cash or another prize.

How to remove PCH Search

You can remove PCH Search Engine from your computer by using a reputable antispyware program, for example, Malwarebytes. Don’t forget to upgrade your security tool to its newest version before running a full system scan. If you want to remove the engine manually, follow the instructions below.

Try uninstalling PCH Search.

• If you’re a Windows user, you should open your Settings, Apps, find PCH Search, and remove it from there.
• MacOS users should open Finder, open the Applications folder, and remove PCH Search from there.

Open your web browser and find the PCH Search extension (such as Search & Win) and remove it, as well.

To check your computer for malware, use Spyhunter for Windows, Combo Cleaner for macOS, and other programs. They can detect any browser hijackers and adware, as well as hidden malware that might be hard to find manually.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Remove PCH Search manually

How to remove PCH Search Engine using Windows Control Panel

Many hijackers and adware like PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine . You can click on "Name" or "Installed On" to reorder your programs and make PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine from macOS

Delete PCH Search Engine from your applications.

1. Open Finder.
2. In the menu bar, click Go.
3. Select Applications from the dropdown.
4. Find the PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine, 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 PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine, 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 PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine, 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 PCH Search Engine from Safari:Top

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall PCH Search Engine 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 PCH Search Engine, 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.