Search.playnsearch.net hijacker - How to remove

Search.playnsearch.net hijacker is a computer virus that might hijack your web browser and change your personal settings. It is done in order to build an audience which could be monetized later on. There is no doubt that Search.playnsearch.net is malicious and should not be operating on your computer.

One of the most obvious symptoms of this infection that you are going to notice right away is changed new tab page. It can be categorized as PUP (potentially unwanted program) or browser hijacker. However, due to various features, it is more of browser hijacker, even though it hijacks only new tab page, while other hijackers can take over homepage and default search engine settings as well.

So if you have noticed that your old new tab page was set to Search.playnsearch.net and you can’t recall doing it on purpose by yourself, it’s a clear indicator that the web browser you are currently using is infected. We suggest to stop using this browser immediately and use alternative web browser until the infection is removed. In this article, we will provide you with instructions on how to do that both manually and automatically, so just proceed reading.

How Search.playnsearch.net is operating on the infected system

This browser hijacker operates as browser extension so in order to successfully infect your computer, it will have to be activated on a specific web browser. Even though it is compatible with all most common web browsers (Internet Explorer, Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox), it will only infect one web browser, even though you have multiple of them installed on your system.

When installed, Search.playnsearch.net will immediately make changes to your personal preferences without even asking for your permission. That’s both annoying and dangerous. There are some common dangers that you are likely to face if you are using web browser infected with Search.playnsearch.net:

• Gathering of personal data;
• Redirects to dangerous websites;
• Malvertising;
• Other malware infiltrated into your computer;
• Slower work of the web browser and computer.

Also, it’s very annoying that removing such extension from a web browser is not very simple. Even though it’s not that difficult to disable a regular extension from a browser, malware makes it complicated to do so because they don’t want to lose users. They place some malicious files directly on the computer and they can be used in order to restore the extension once it is disabled or even removed from extensions list. In this case scenario, a lot of users get frustrated when they see that Search.playnsearch.net is once again on the web browser even after they removed the extension and restored their personal settings.

Search.playnsearch.net website features

Basically, there is one main feature on Search.playnsearch.net website – it’s web search. As promised, you should be able to search the web faster and more securely because there is a private search option. However, the reality is harsh and you won’t get what’s promised. Vice versa, you put your personal files in danger just by using this search.

All search queries submitted to Search.playnsearch.net are collected and might be used for marketing purposes, i.e.transferred. So if some of your personal details are revealed in the search, it can possibly land in the hands of cybercriminals. That’s the main reason why we do not recommend using this tool.

Next, you will have an option to change the background picture and search for news/images/video. All in all, this search engine has no unique advantages over the most popular ones, such as Google or Yahoo. In fact, Search.playnsearch.net redirects users to Yahoo search engine to display results. However, results displayed there can be modified thus you should not trust them. Clicking on one of those results might result in getting scammed or your computer being infected with other viruses.

Also, you will be exposed to various banner advertisements that shouldn’t be there. Just take a look at this search:

Those ads clearly shouldn’t be there as they have nothing to do with the search query. Also, clicking on them might be dangerous and we highly recommend to stay away from them.

Various browser hijackers like search.hquickspeedcheck.com or GetPoliticalNews.com also act in a very similar manner – they display ads and redirect users to other websites. It is done in order to generate revenue since they get paid for every single click on promoted content. It’s not a secret that other cybercriminals choose advertising networks like this one to promote their websites and services.

Removing Search.playnsearch.net from a computer

We have already informed you that in order to successfully eliminate Search.playnsearch.net from your system, you have to remove it both from your web browser and the computer itself.

There are instructions waiting for you on how to remove this infection manually, but in case you have no time for that or simply think that your knowledge in this field is not sufficient to do that, you can always use professional anti-malware tool to help you. There are a lot of good anti-malware programs to choose from, yet in this case, we suggest to use Spyhunter. Either one of those programs will be able to detect and automatically remove Search.playnsearch.net just in a couple of minutes.

Automatic Malware removal tools

How to remove playnsearch hijacker using Windows Control Panel

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

Delete Search.playnsearch.net hijacker from your applications.

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

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall playnsearch hijacker 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 Search.playnsearch.net hijacker, 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.