Tabssearch.com Search Hijacker - How to remove

Tabssearch.com (Tabs Search) is a search hijacker that appears in browsers thanks to some shady wallpaper extensions. Although Tabssearch.com appears to be a normal search engine, it does sometimes advertise adware and malware, which makes it somewhat dangerous to use. To remove Tabssearch.com, it’s enough to remove the offending browser extension and make sure that no adware remains on your device.

In short about Tabssearch.com:

Type of threat	Adware, browser hijacker.
How Tabssearch.com spreads	Installed with new tab browser extensions.
Problems and dangers	Hijacks the search engine without a good justification, provides a worse searching experience when compared to mainstream search engines.
Removing Tabssearch.com	Uninstall suspicious extensions, use anti-malware applications (Spyhunter for PC, Combo Cleaner for Mac, etc.) to remove malware.

What is Tabssearch.com

I first discovered Tabssearch.com because it was linking to browser hijackers like YogaPoseOnline and Daily Recipe Guide. Checking it out, it looks like just another alternative search engine. It copies its visual design from Google.com, which makes it appear more trustworthy – a tactic used by a lot of shady alternative search engines.

Tabssearch.com (not to be confused with Tab Search, an unrelated browser extension) spreads with various HD wallpaper new tab extensions – browser extensions that show wallpapers on the browser’s new tab page. The extensions are for online games like Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and Fortnite, as well as for generic HD wallpapers. Another type of Tabssearch.com extension is Homepage Quick Search Engine, a search replacer.

Browser extensions are little programs that can be installed on a browser and change how it works. In the case of Tabssearch.com, it replaces the default search engine. When you look at the extension’s features, you can see that it:

• changes the new tab page,
• reads your browsing history,
• changes the search settings to Tabssearch.com.

Those are typical browser hijacker features. The wallpaper extensions force people to use Tabssearch.com, while Tabssearch.com delivers advertisements. The more people go to Tabssearch.com, the more popular the ads are, and the more money the owners of Tabssearch.com make. Adware developers make up any excuse they can to change your new tab page and set a new search engine for you, as that lets them take over your search traffic and fill your search results with ads.

Besides decorating your new tab page with a nice wallpaper, the Tabssearch.com extensions also offer a variety of features in their new tab pages, including weather forecasts, social media links, news, most visited websites, and others. That makes Tabssearch.com somewhat similar to the Searchdimension family of hijackers.

For the users, this deal is pretty bad. The Tabssearch.com search engine lacks a lot of features that normal search engines have, such as filtering by result type or language. The weather forecasts just don’t make up for it. Not to mention, changing wallpapers on your new tab page is easy enough without any browser extensions.

It’s not clear what company is behind Tabssearch.com – this information isn’t included in Tabssearch.com’s privacy policy, home page, or the extension descriptions. To not reveal the developer is a red flag, as it shows that nobody wants to put their honor behind the project. It’s also one of a few signs that the extensions should not be trusted. Other suspicious features of the Tabssearch.com extensions include a lack of reviews and ratings compared to the number of installations (this often means that people install the extension by accident).

How to remove Tabssearch.com

Removing browser extensions manually is easy enough. You can right-click the extension’s icon in your browser and click “Remove”. The icons are to the right of your address bar (if you don’t see any, try dragging the right edge of your address bar to the left). But first, you have to actually figure out which extensions are responsible for Tabssearch.com hijacking your searches.

It’s a good idea to scan your computer with an anti-malware program, such as Spyhunter for Windows, Combo Cleaner for macOS, and other apps. Many anti-malware programs can detect dangerous browser extensions and warn you about them.

Another method is to open your browser’s extension settings and examine each extension. Check extension permissions for items like controlling your new tab page and changing your default search engine. Examine each extension’s privacy policy. Even if you think that you can trust an extension, don’t give it a free pass. Disable each one of your extensions and test your browser to see if Tabssearch.com redirects have disappeared.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Manually remove browser extensions

TopRemoving Tabssearch.com Search Hijacker from Chrome

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Google Chrome window. Select “Settings”.
  
• Click “Extensions” on the left menu bar.
• Go through the extensions list and remove programs you do not need, especially similar to Tabssearch.com Search Hijacker. Click on the trash bin icon next to Tabssearch.com Search Hijacker or other add-ons you want to remove.
  
• Press on the “Remove” button on the Confirmation window.
  
• If unsure, you can disable them temporarily.
  
• Restart Chrome.

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings

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

• Click on Chrome’s menu button (three horizontal lines) and select Settings.
  
• Scroll to the end of the page and click on the Reset 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 Tabssearch.com Search Hijacker from Microsoft Edge:Top

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

• Go through the extensions list and remove programs you do not need, especially similar to Tabssearch.com Search Hijacker. Click on the "Remove" icon next to Tabssearch.com Search Hijacker or other add-ons you want to remove.

• Press on the “Remove” button on the Confirmation window.

• If unsure, you can disable them temporarily.

• Restart Microsoft Edge.