What is Privacyassistant.net?
Privacyassistant.net can one day replace your start page, new tab page, or even default search engine preferences if you are too careless while installing the software you find on the Internet. Our researchers at Anti-spyware-101.com say it is a browser hijacker and same as other similar threats from this category, the application could be traveling with doubtful pop-up ads or bundled program installers. Even though it is not a harmful threat and cannot do any damage to the computer, its presence might make the system more vulnerable. Therefore, if you do not think Privacyassistant.net is an application you cannot live without, we encourage you to replace it with a more trustworthy tool. The browser hijacker’s deletion should not take long, and if you check the instructions below this text, you may find the task is not so complicated.
Where does Privacyassistant.net come from?
Just as we explained in the beginning, Privacyassistant.net may settle on the system after launching a bundled software installer or clicking suspicious pop-up advertisements. Such content can be encountered while visiting file-sharing web pages that distribute freeware or pirated software, e.g., it could be web pages like malavida.es, descargar.es, or others. Users who visit such sites from time to time should be more careful, and it would be recommended to have a legitimate antimalware tool on the system, so it could notify the user about potential threats or stop malicious programs from entering the computer.
Every time you download setup files you should scan them with the security tool just for precaution. Also, after launching such files, it would be best to pick custom installation settings and review all terms to learn if there is no possibility the configuration wizard could add any unwanted or even dangerous programs. For instance, the setup file may inform that some programs might be installed automatically or it might even present the tools and allow you to deselect them.
How does Privacyassistant.net work?
Once the browser hijacker modifies some of the user’s browser preferences to ensure he would browse the Internet with Privacyassistant.net, the application might start gathering information about the user’s browsing habits or other non-personal data. It appears to be such information might be shared with the browser hijacker’s third-party associates. At least that is what we have learned from reading the search engine’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Use statements. The listed documents also mention third-party links that might be displayed through Privacyassistant.net. Such content may look tempting since it could be based on the information the software collects about you, but we advise you to resist the temptation to interact with it.
There are no guarantees the third-party links will not lead you to dangerous web pages, e.g., some sites could contain viruses, Trojans, or other malicious threats. Not to mention users might encounter scam web pages trying to convince them to submit sensitive data while participating in fake lotteries, surveys, etc. Anyone who would not like to risk coming across such content should get rid of the browser hijacker with no hesitation and get a more reliable search tool.
How to erase Privacyassistant.net?
One of the easier ways to eliminate the browser hijacker would be to install a legitimate antimalware tool. Then you could perform a full system scan to locate data associated with Privacyassistant.net or even other possible threats. Right after the scan users could erase all detections at once by just clicking the deletion button. The second option we could suggest is removing or fixing files that might have been modified by the application manually. In this case, we advise you to have a look at the instructions placed below as they can explain to you what to do step by step.
Remove Privacyassistant.net from browsers
Internet Explorer
- Click Win+R.
- Insert regedit and press Enter.
- Search for the specific path: HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main
- Locate a value name called Start Page.
- Right-click the value name and select Modify.
- Instead of http://Privacyassistant.net place a website you prefer.
- Select OK.
- Close Registry Editor.
Mozilla Firefox
- Tap Win+E.
- Find the particular location: C:\Users\user\AppData\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\{Unique Mozilla user ID}
- Search for Prefs.js and open this file with Notepad.
- Look for the specific line: user_pref("browser.startup.homepage", "http://Privacyassistant.net").
- Instead of http://Privacyassistant.net place a link you like.
- Press Ctrl+S.
- Close the document.
Google Chrome
- Press Win+E.
- Find the specific location: C:\Users\{username}\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default.
- Right-click files called Preferences, Secure Preferences, and Web Data.
- Then select Delete to erase them.
- Exit File Explorer.
tested removal of Privacyassistant.net*
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