What is SearchOpedia?
SearchOpedia is an extension that promises to enhance and optimize your web browsing experience. Can it deliver on these promises? Unfortunately, it cannot, and those who decide to trust this tool are likely to expose themselves to unreliable parties as well. The bottom line is that this supposedly beneficial search tool acts more like an advertising tool. Sure, it shows search results, but it does not show its own. Instead, it exploits Yahoo Search for that. Then, it injects advertisements into the results you would normally see on search.yahoo.com, which exposes you to sponsored content every time you use the search tool. Needless to say, this is not a beneficial or trustworthy search engine, and our recommendation is that you delete SearchOpedia from your browser without any delay. Anti-Spyware-101.com researchers have thoroughly analyzed this PUP (potentially unwanted program), and we can show you how to remove it from Google Chrome. If you are interested, keep reading.
How does SearchOpedia work?
Did you download the suspicious SearchOpedia from install.search-opedia.com or the Chrome Web Store, chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/searchopedia/cjbhmaipbpjlechbpeifgjhojnhohiio? If you did, were you introduced to either of these sources in a strange way? For example, you could have been shown the installer’s pop-up in full-screen as you were browsing unreliable websites. Perhaps, you do not know where this suspicious extension has come from at all? While PUP distributors have many sneaky ways to introduce people to unreliable and useless programs or extensions, some people might decide to install SearchOpedia thinking that it can offer beneficial services. After all, its official description suggests that it can provide Google Chrome users with “The best way to search.” That is a huge claim, and people might be intrigued. All in all, regardless of how you end up installing the extension, our recommendation is that you delete the PUP in the end. Sure, the portal.search-opedia.com page represented via the New Tab can offer seemingly useful free widgets (e.g., file converter or calculator), but make no mistake, it was created to introduce you to the PUP’s search tool.
When you install SearchOpedia, not only the New Tab page is modified. The default search provider is changed as well, and it is changed to feed.search-opedia.com. The same thing happens if Google Chrome users install SearchConverter, SearchAholic, SearchHD, or any other PUP created by webcoapps. This is the creator of SearchOpedia as well. These PUPs are made to look like normal search tools, but they are not normal under any circumstances. Every single one of them redirects users’ searches to search.yahoo.com (Yahoo Search), where the results are modified to represent sponsored content. Of course, you can use the tool to find normal results as well, but that means that you have to weed through the ads first. And why do you need to avoid ads injected by the PUP, you might ask. That is important because webcoapps shares user-related information with advertisers, who are not identified. Unfortunately, we have to consider the possibility that these advertisers are unreliable and that they are using sensitive data to trick people.
How to delete SearchOpedia
Is SearchOpedia a malicious infection? No, it is not. Is it a trustworthy and beneficial search tool? No, it is not. It might look like a normal search engine at first, and some people might not even notice that it redirects to Yahoo Search, and that is because this search engine is used by millions already. Unfortunately, the PUP not only redirects to Yahoo Search but also changes the results users see. That is done to include sponsored links by third-party advertisers we know nothing about. The PUP’s creator has done a good job at concealing its partners, and that is not something you can ignore in this situation. At the end of the day, the extension does not do anything besides redirecting searches and injecting ads. Is this the search tool you want to use? We are sure that it is not. To remove SearchOpedia from your browser, you can follow the instructions below. However, if the PUP was installed along with unreliable programs (use a malware scanner to check), the best thing you can do is install an automated anti-malware program.
Removal Instructions (Google Chrome)
- Launch the browser and tap ALT+F keys.
- In the Chrome menu on the right, click More tools.
- Click Extensions and then Remove the undesirable extension.
- Repeat steps 1-2 and then click Clear browsing data.
- Select a time range, mark the boxes, and click Clear data.
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