What is Search and Newtab?
Did you download Search and Newtab by toupdate15 thinking that it can help you browse the web more efficiently? Most likely, you do not even know where it came from, or you were tricked into letting it in when you executed a bundled downloader. The installer of this PUP (potentially unwanted program) can be found on the popular Chrome Web Store, at chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/search-and-newtab/gffphgpcblfoaknmcaldoggadmomcgmm. Although it is suggested that more than 200,000 people have downloaded this extension, and it has a 3/5* rating, the reviews written by actual users are terrible. Some of them claim: “Keeps installing itself after multiple removals, please help” or “google do somthing about this, its a virus and it keeps downloading by itself.” Clearly, this extension is doing something strange, and that is what we are here to discuss. Needless to say, we recommend removing Search and Newtab, but before you delete this PUP, we recommend that you read this report to learn all about it.
How does Search and Newtab work?
It is pretty obvious that Search and Newtab is not liked by its actual users. Then why do people install this extension? Our Anti-Spyware-101.com researchers assume that most people are tricked into letting this PUP in. Most likely, it is spreading with the help of misleading download links, advertisements, and software bundles. This only proves how important it is to check and research every single file one downloads. The installer on the Chrome Web Store claims that Search and Newtab can set up the new tab with media content and also install a search engine. Once installed, this extension gains the ability to replace the page you see in the New Tab and also display notifications. The New Tab page is replaced with toupdate15.com, and the interface of this website is pretty convincing. In the center, you can find a search dialog box with a few easy-access links to popular websites. At the top, you can find additional third-party links in such categories as Movies, TV, Sports, News, Social, E-Mail, and Shopping. The website offers links to hulu.com, netflix.com, tv.com, imdb.com, espn.go.com, skysports.com, bbc.com, facebook.com, instagram.com, youtube.com, mail.google.com, outlook.com, and similar popular sites.
The search dialog box presented by toupdate15.com redirects all searches to Google Search. This is one of the reasons why Search and Newtab is classified as a potentially unwanted program. Even if you enjoy Google Search, why would you access it via a different search engine? That makes no sense. Although the results shown do not appear to be modified by the PUP, data-tracking tools employed by it could collect information about you and your browsing behavior. The most unnerving thing about Search and Newtab is that users claim to be unable to remove it. Whether you like this extension or not, you should be able to delete it freely, as you wish. The thing is that you cannot eliminate this extension from Google Chrome as a normal extension. Instead, you need to uninstall or remove it from your operating system, which is very odd. Overall, the PUP is useless and suspicious, and so deleting it is the best thing you could do.
How to remove Search and Newtab
Although you might have struggled to delete Search and Newtab from your system until now, we have a guide that will help you eliminate this potentially unwanted program. You should be able to uninstall it via the Control Panel, but we show where to find the actual files of this PUP. Just in case this does not work for you, implementing a legitimate anti-malware tool is definitely the right move. Install this tool, and it will simultaneously clean and protect your system. If you are not interested in the automated Search and Newtab removal, or if you do not want to invest money in your virtual security, we recommend at least installing a free malware scanner. This tool can help you determine which programs or extensions are considered to be threatening and, therefore, require removal. As always, if you want to discuss the PUP further, you can do so using the comments section below.
Removal Guide
- Simultaneously tap Win and E keys on the keyboard to access File Explorer.
- Enter %APPDATA% into the quick access field at the top to access the directory.
- Right-click and Delete the folder named SearchNewTab.
- Exit File Explorer and then Empty Recycle Bin to complete the process.
- Install a trusted malware scanner to inspect your operating system for leftovers.
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