Search.mytab.club

Posted by Max Lehmann on July 20, 2017

What is Search.mytab.club?

Search.mytab.club may look like a legitimate search engine, but the truth is that it is nothing more but a browser hijacker set to replace your browser’s homepage address. You should consider removing it because of the fact that it replaces the homepage address without authorization. Indeed, its creators have resorted to malicious distribution methods to get Search.mytab.club on as many computers as they can because, apparently, its search results are ad-supported. Hence, they can feature promotional links that generate ad revenue for their creators. Without a doubt, this search engine was created to show you promotions in a clandestine manner, which is dishonest.

Where does Search.mytab.club comes from?

According to its privacy policy, Search.mytab.club was created by a company that calls itself ChumSearch. Almost nothing is known about this company apart from the fact that there is little to no information about it. Therefore, our malware analysts assume that it is a fake company name included in this hijacker to make it look more legitimate. Nevertheless, Search.mytab.club features a well-worded privacy policy, but it may have been copied from somewhere else. Research has shown that its privacy policy has been copied from Goforandroid.com that belongs to Guangzhou Jiubang Digital Technology Co. Guangzhou Jiubang makes apps for Android phones, so it is not affiliated with ChumSearch.

Researchers have concluded that Search.mytab.club is disseminated along with a dedicated browser extension called Mytab.club that is compatible with Google Chrome. You can get this extension from www.mytab.club or the Chrome Web Store. The unique browser extension identifier code for Mytab.club is nmbokhnboogdcbbcblmnedijpfgikdoe which can help you identify it if need be. The Chrome Web Store also provides no relevant information about this search engine, so it just goes to show how suspicious Search.mytab.club and Mytab.club are. Nevertheless, they are still featured on the store, which is regrettable. That does it for this hijacker’s origins, so now let us take a closer look at its functions and features.

What does Search.mytab.club do?

When Mytab.club is installed on your PC, it replaces the homepage address and also the new tab page of Google Chrome. Essentially, its creators want you to use this search engine for searching for information online. As per usual, Search.mytab.club redirects all search queries to a modified Yahoo search engine because most browser hijackers use Yahoo. While hijacking your browser’s homepage and new tab page may be the most malicious actions this search engine does, there are some other aspects of it that are rather questionable.

Apparently, Search.mytab.club has been designed to offer and present you with content that can include news, messages, advertisements, and games. From the outset, it is obvious that this hijacker is all about promoting third-party content and, since it comes from a shady background, you cannot trust it to deliver you vetted content. Some of the ads and promoted links can subject you to malicious content such as adware, spyware, and so on. However, we do not expect it to promote highly malicious software such as ransomware, fake anti-malware programs, and so on. Nevertheless, we advise caution.

Another thing to note is that this hijacker has been configured to gather information about you to customize somewhat and personalize the promoted content you see in order to generate more ad revenue. The collected information includes, without limitation, ISP (Internet Service Provider), location, Internet protocol (IP) address, anonymous user identifiers, device configuration and identifiers, internet search related applications, web pages visited, and so on. This information is of technical nature and is used for various justifiable purposes. However, since this hijacker is ad supported, we believe that it can show you personalized content that you may be more inclined to interact with. However, personalized ads do not mean that they are safe.

How do I remove Search.mytab.club?

Search.mytab.club is just another browser hijacker that was designed to replace your browser’s homepage and new tab page addresses. The purpose is to make you use it and view promotional links and ads that generate ad revenue for the developers but can pose a risk to your PC as there is no way to know whether they are safe to interact with. To be on the safe side of things and get your old homepage address back, you ought to remove Mytab.club and replace Search.mytab.club in your browser’s options menu.