Have you opened the web-browser and found a previously unseen web page called Zhinku.info? If you answered ‘Yes’ then your need to know that your machine is infected with malicious software from the browser hijacker family. It is a type of unwanted software which changes the system’s browser settings so that you are redirected to an annoying web-page. Follow the instructions below as soon as possible to remove Zhinku.info and stop the ability to penetrate of more harmful viruses and trojans on your PC.
http://zhinku.info/i/home.html
Most often, the Zhinku.info hijacker affects most common web-browsers such as Firefox, Chrome, Internet Explorer and MS Edge. But such browser hijacker infections as well may infect another web browsers by changing its shortcuts (adding ‘http://zhinku.info/i/home.html’ into Target field of browser’s shortcut). So every time you launch the web browser, it’ll display Zhinku.info web-site. Even if you setup your startpage again, it’s still the first thing you see when you open the internet browser will be the annoying Zhinku.info web page.
Besides the fact that Zhinku.info infection replaces your home page, this annoying web site can set yourself as your search engine. But, obviously, it does not give you a good search results, as they will consist of a large number of ads, links to harmful and misleading web-sites and only the remaining part is search results for your query from the major search engines. Of course, the very fact that you encounter with the inability to properly search the Internet, is an unpleasant moment. Moreover, the Zhinku.info hijacker may collect information about you, and in the future to transfer it to third parties. What creates the risk of theft of your personal data.
Often, the personal computer that has been infected with Zhinku.info browser hijacker, will be also infected with adware (sometimes called ‘ad-supported’ software) that displays tons of various advertisements. It may be pop-ups, text links in the web sites, banners where they never had. What is more, the ad supported software may replace the legitimate ads with malicious advertisements that will offer to download and install malware and unwanted programs or visit the various dangerous and misleading web pages.
We recommend you to free your computer as quickly as possible. Use the guide below that will assist to get rid of Zhinku.info startpage and malicios application, which can be installed onto your personal computer along with it.
Tips to prevent Zhinku.info and other unwanted applications
The Zhinku.info browser hijacker infection actively distributed with free software, as a part of the installer of these programs. Therefore, it is very important, when installing an unknown application even downloaded from known or big hosting site, read the Terms of use and the Software license, as well as to choose the Manual, Advanced or Custom setup mode. In this mode, you can disable the installation of unneeded modules and applications and protect your PC from such hijackers as the Zhinku.info. Unfortunately, most users when installing unknown applications, simply press the Next button, and do not read any information that the free software displays them during its installation. This leads to the fact that the browser’s settings are changed and browser’s homepage and search engine by default set to Zhinku.info.
How to manually remove Zhinku.info
The simple answer is right here on this page. We have put together simplicity and efficiency. It will allow you easily to clean your PC system of hijacker. Moreover, you can choose manual or automatic removal method. If you are familiar with the system then use manual removal, otherwise use the free anti-malware tool designed specifically to remove browser hijacker like Zhinku.info. Of course, you can combine both methods. Read this manual carefully, bookmark or print it, because you may need to close your web-browser or reboot your computer.
- Remove Zhinku.info associated software by using Windows Control Panel
- Disinfect the browser’s shortcuts to remove Zhinku.info
- Remove Zhinku.info search from Google Chrome
- Remove Zhinku.info startpage from FF
- Delete Zhinku.info startpage from Internet Explorer
Remove Zhinku.info associated software by using Windows Control Panel
First, you should try to identify and remove the application that causes the appearance of annoying ads or internet browser redirect, using the ‘Uninstall a program’ which is located in the ‘Control panel’.
Windows 8, 8.1, 10
, then click Search 
. Type ‘Control panel’and press Enter as shown below. 
When the ‘Control Panel’ opens, click the ‘Uninstall a program’ link under Programs category as shown on the image below. 
You will see the ‘Uninstall a program’ panel as shown in the figure below. 
Very carefully look around the entire list of applications installed on your machine. Most likely, one or more of them are responsible for the appearance of pop-up ads and web browser redirect to the unwanted Zhinku.info site. If you have many programs installed, you can help simplify the search of harmful software by sort the list by date of installation. Once you have found a suspicious, unwanted or unused program, right click to it, after that click ‘Uninstall’.
Windows XP, Vista, 7
Once the Windows ‘Control Panel’ opens, you need to click ‘Uninstall a program’ under ‘Programs’ as shown on the screen below. 
You will see a list of software installed on your machine. We recommend to sort the list by date of installation to quickly find the software that were installed last. Most likely they responsibility for the appearance of advertisements and web-browser redirect. If you are in doubt, you can always check the application by doing a search for her name in Google, Yahoo or Bing. When the program which you need to uninstall is found, simply click on its name, and then click ‘Uninstall’ as on the image below. 
Disinfect the browser’s shortcuts to remove Zhinku.info
When installed, this hijacker infection may add an argument such as “http://zhinku.info/i/home.html” into the Target property of the desktop shortcut for the Chrome, FF, MS Edge and Internet Explorer. Due to this, every time you start the browser, it will open the annoying start page.
Right click on the internet browser’s shortcut, click Properties option. On the Shortcut tab, locate the Target field. Click inside, you will see a vertical line – arrow pointer, move it (using -> arrow key on your keyboard) to the right as possible. You will see a text “http://zhinku.info/i/home.html” that has been added here. Remove everything after .exe. An example, for Google Chrome you should remove everything after chrome.exe.
To save changes, click OK . You need to clean all browser’s shortcuts. So, repeat this step for the Chrome, IE, Mozilla Firefox and Edge.
Remove Zhinku.info search from Google Chrome
Reset Chrome settings is a simple way to remove the browser hijacker, malicious and ‘ad-supported’ extensions, as well as to restore the internet browser’s homepage, new tab page and search engine by default that have been modified by Zhinku.info hijacker.
- First start the Google Chrome and click Menu button (small button in the form of three horizontal stripes).
- It will open the Google Chrome main menu. Select “Settings” option.
- You will see the Google Chrome’s settings page. Scroll down and press “Show advanced settings” link.
- Scroll down again and click the “Reset settings” button.
- The Google Chrome will open the reset profile settings page as shown on the screen above.
- Next click the “Reset” button.
- Once this task is complete, your browser’s home page, newtab page and search provider by default will be restored to their original defaults.
- To learn more, read the blog post How to reset Google Chrome settings to default.
Remove Zhinku.info startpage from FF
If the Mozilla Firefox settings such as homepage and search engine by default have been replaced by the infection, then resetting it to the default state can help.
First, run the Firefox and click 
button. It will show the drop-down menu on the right-part of the web browser. Further, click the Help button (
) like below
. 
In the Help menu, select the “Troubleshooting Information” option. Another way to open the “Troubleshooting Information” screen – type “about:support” in the web-browser adress bar and press Enter. It will open the “Troubleshooting Information” page like below. In the upper-right corner of this screen, click the “Refresh Firefox” button. 
It will display the confirmation dialog box. Further, press the “Refresh Firefox” button. The FF will begin a procedure to fix your problems that caused by the Zhinku.info browser hijacker. Once, it’s finished, click the “Finish” button.
Delete Zhinku.info startpage from Internet Explorer
First, launch the Microsoft Internet Explorer. Next, press the button in the form of gear (
). It will open the Tools drop-down menu, click the “Internet Options” like below.
In the “Internet Options” window click on the Advanced tab, then click the Reset button. The Internet Explorer will open the “Reset Internet Explorer settings” window like below. Select the “Delete personal settings” check box, then click “Reset” button.
You will now need to reboot your personal computer for the changes to take effect.
How to delete Zhinku.info automatically
Manual removal is not always as effective as you might think. Often, even the most experienced users can not completely remove browser hijacker from the infected computer. This is because the browser hijacker can hide its components which are difficult for you to find out and remove completely. This may lead to the fact that after some time, the browser hijacker again infect your system and modify its settings to Zhinku.info. Moreover, I want to note that it’s not always safe to remove browser hijacker manually, if you do not have much experience in setting up and configuring the operating system.
I suggest using the Malwarebytes Free that are completely clean your computer. The free tool is an advanced malware removal program developed by (c) Malwarebytes lab. This program uses the world’s most popular anti-malware technology. It is able to help you remove browser hijackers, malware, adware, toolbars, ransomware and other security threats from your PC system for free.
Download Malwarebytes on your personal computer by clicking on the link below. Save it on your Windows desktop or in any other place.
326386 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: April 15, 2020
Once the downloading process is done, close all programs and windows on your PC system. Double-click the set up file named mb3-setup. If the “User Account Control” prompt pops up as shown below, click the “Yes” button.
It will open the “Setup wizard” which will help you install Malwarebytes on your personal computer. Follow the prompts and don’t make any changes to default settings.
Once setup is complete successfully, press Finish button. Malwarebytes will automatically start and you can see its main screen like below.
Now press the “Scan Now” button to begin scanning your system for the browser hijacker infection that cause a redirect to Zhinku.info. When a malware is found, the number of the security threats will change accordingly. Wait until the the checking is done. Please be patient.
As the scanning ends, you can check all threats detected on your personal computer. Make sure all entries have “checkmark” and click “Quarantine Selected” button. The Malwarebytes will start removing Zhinku.info infection and other security threats. Once disinfection is finished, you may be prompted to reboot the personal computer.
I recomend you look at the following video, which completely explains the procedure of using the Malwarebytes to remove browser hijacker and other malware.
How to block Zhinku.info startpage
To increase your security and protect your computer against new unwanted advertisements and malicious web sites, you need to use application that blocks access to dangerous ads and web-sites. Moreover, the software can block the open of intrusive advertising, which also leads to faster loading of pages and reduce the consumption of web traffic.
- Download AdGuard application from the following link.
Adguard download
26627 downloads
Version: 6.4
Author: © Adguard
Category: Security tools
Update: November 15, 2018
- When downloading is finished, run the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” program window. Follow the prompts.
- When the installation is done, click “Skip” to close the installation program and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” to see an quick tutorial which will assist you get to know AdGuard better.
- In most cases, the default settings are enough and you do not need to change anything. Each time, when you start your PC system, AdGuard will start automatically and block pop-up ads, web-pages such Zhinku.info, as well as other malicious or misleading web-pages. For an overview of all the features of the application, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the icon named AdGuard, which is located on your desktop.
Remove Zhinku.info browser hijacker and malicious extensions with AdwCleaner.
If MalwareBytes Anti-malware cannot get rid of this browser hijacker, then we suggests to use the AdwCleaner. AdwCleaner is a free removal utility for browser hijackers, ad supported software, potentially unwanted software and toolbars.
Download AdwCleaner by clicking on the link below.
225263 downloads
Version: 8.4.1
Author: Xplode, MalwareBytes
Category: Security tools
Update: October 5, 2024
Once the downloading process is complete, open the directory in which you saved it. You will see an icon like below.
Double click the AdwCleaner desktop icon. Once the tool is started, you will see a screen as shown on the screen below.
Further, click “Scan” button . This will start scanning the whole system to find out Zhinku.info infection and web-browser’s malicious extensions. When the system scan is finished, it will show a scan report like below.
Review the report and then click “Clean” button. It will show a prompt as shown on the image below.
You need to click “OK”. When the cleaning process is finished, the AdwCleaner may ask you to restart your computer. When your PC system is started, you will see an AdwCleaner log.
These steps are shown in detail in the following video guide.
Finish words
Now your machine should be clean of the Zhinku.info . Remove AdwCleaner. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you block unwanted pop-ups and annoying harmful web-sites) and Malwarebytes (to periodically scan your system for new malware, browser hijackers and ad supported software). Make sure that you have all the Critical Updates recommended for Windows OS. Without regular updates you WILL NOT be protected when new browser hijacker, malicious applications and adware are released.
If you are still having problems while trying to get rid of Zhinku.info homepage from your web browser, then ask for help in our Spyware/Malware removal forum.
