How to Manually Remove UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO

 

Guide to Remove UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO Redirect

 

Virus Description of UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO Redirect Virus

 

 

UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO redirect virus, also deemed as a browser hijacker, is used by hackers to boost website traffic and it can badly interfere with users online activities. Pretending to be a legitimate website, this redirect virus will provide users the search service as what Google does. In fact, this website is not as helpful as what it appears, for it may be used by cyber criminals to make a profit by using the pay-per-link technique. Usually, UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO is distributed to different PCs via phishing websites, unsecure pop-ups and bogus ads. The redirect will put those sites which sponsor it much to the top so that it will gain illegal benefits from the pay-per-click technique. If computer users carelessly click on any source that contains this threat, their computer may be infected and their browsers are in chaos.

 

The initial change this UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO redirect brings to the infected computer is to infect the system browser and make modification on it so that the users cannot operate their browsers as they used to do. At the beginning, PC users will find that their browser including Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome or other browsers are much wired. The most obvious change may be the replacement of the homepage. As a result, this unwanted website can open automatically whenever users start the browsers or open a new tab. With a view to protect itself from be easily removed from the affected computer, this virus will forbid PC users to visit legitimate sites even display a lot of pop up advertisements to stop users from normal use.

 

The redirect virus should not be kept as default homepage of the browser or the potential harmful activities performed by it won t stop. If it can t be deleted in time, many unwanted add-ons, toolbars or plug-ins may be installed on the target browsers and users cookies may be traced. It is dangerous that the remote hackers are able to know the information of victim s confidential online data for the reason that they will use these personal data to perform illegal actions and get money from them. If users have spotted by a dratic drop of system performance along with Blue Screen of Death error pops- up, it is suggested to check the PC for UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO infection problems. What s still, UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO redirect virus will open a backdoor for other harmful computer threat access the target computer to corrupt further. Once the back door is found by remote attackers, they will be allowed to access to the compromised computer and do whatever they want on the machine.

 

What Are the Dangers of the Redirect Virus?

 

 UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO is a terrible browser hijacker that can cause serious redirect problems, which may keep redirecting you to its own domain or other unknown websites when you start the browser or open new tabs. Sometimes it is not effective to remove this threat by using a antivirus program. It usually comes bundled with Spyware, Adware and Malware which may corrupt your system severely by all means. That s because the security removal tools are not intellective enough to catch all viruses, especially those are endowed with changeable characteristics. UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO is a redirect virus designed with advanced techniques which enable it to escape from detection and removal by general security tools. In this case, users can try removing UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO redirect virus using the manual removal method.

 

Be advised; never try to remove this threat unless you are a PC experts with experience on virus removal since the redirect infection will mess up the system completely after attacking. If you haven t sufficient skills to handle the process, it is suggested to download an advanced removal tool on your computer. Otherwise, any mistake occurs could make your situation go from bad to worse.

 

How to Manually Remove UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO

 

Step 1: Open Task Manager (Press Ctrl+Alt+Del keys together) and terminate the processes of UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO so that you can uninstall it from control panel easily. If it’s not running, you may not see it in task manager.

Random.exe *32

Step 2: We will try to identify and uninstall any malicious program that might be installed on your computer.

(1) Go to Uninstall Memu

To uninstall a program on Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7, click the “Start” button, then click on the “Control Panel” menu option.

When the “Control Panel” window opens click on the “Uninstall a program” option under “Programs” category.

(2) When the “Programs and Features” screen is displayed, scroll through the list of currently installed programs and uninstall “UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO”.
The malicious program may have a different name on your computer. To view the most recently installed programs, you can click on the “Installed On” column to sort your program by the installation date. Scroll through the list, and uninstall any unwanted or unknown programs.

 

If you are using Windows 8/8.1, Windows 10, right-click on the Windows Start button and choose “Control Panel” from the pop-up menu

 

When the “Control Panel” window opens click on the “Uninstall a program” option under “Programs” category.

 

(2) When the “Programs and Features” screen is displayed, scroll through the list of currently installed programs and uninstall “UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO”.
The malicious program may have a different name on your computer. To view the most recently installed programs, you can click on the “Installed On” column to sort your program by the installation date. Scroll through the list, and uninstall any unwanted or unknown programs.

Step 3: open C drive. Search for files/folders related to UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO and remove them manually. Make sure that you dont delete the important system files, otherwise your computer won’t be able to start up.

%UserProfile%\Application Data\Microsoft\[random].exe
%System Root%\Samples
%windows%\system32\drivers\UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO.sys
%User Profile%\Local Settings\Temp
%Documents and Settings%\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO
%Documents and Settings%\All Users\Application Data\ ” ”
doguzeri.dll
3948550101.exe
3948550101.cfg
%Program Files%\UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO
%Program Files(x86)%\ ” ”
C:\ProgramData\[random numbers]\

Step 4: Go to Registry editor (Press Win+R keys together, you will see Run Box, type ‘regedit’, then hit ‘Enter’), remove all registry keys generated by UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO one by one.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\msseces.exe “Debugger” = ‘svchost.exe’
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings “WarnOnHTTPSToHTTPRedirect” = ’0′
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings “WarnOnHTTPSToHTTPRedirect” = ’0′
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SystemRestore “DisableSR ” = ’1′
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\ekrn.exe “Debugger” = ‘svchost.exe’
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options\msascui.exe “Debugger” = ‘svchost.exe’
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run “3948550101″
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run “xas”
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO

 

 

Conclusion

 

UNIVERSALSEARCH.CO can bring constant trouble and PC problems once infected. Can it not only damage your browser but also cause other unexpected problems. Some PC users try to ignore the virus infection and use another normal browser, but finally all the browsers will be infected by this browser hijack redirect. With the help of random files, it can bypass the detection and uninstall by removal tools. Under such circumstance, users can consider manually removing this threat from their machines.

 

Please note that the manual removal may not work if the browser hijacker doesn t appear in control panel, so it is not easy for regular users to locate to its files and remove them completely. You can ask for professional help when you are removing this threat manually.