How to remove Idle Buddy [Virus removal guide]

What is Idle Buddy? Idle Buddy is a malicious software. It can alter Microsoft Windows OS and internet browsers settings, download and install other malware, ad-supported software and potentially unwanted programs. Moreover, this virus can give a remote access to your computer and use your computer’s resources to generate digital money. It will make your computer run very slow. On current date, the Idle Buddy virus continues to increase the number of PCs which have been infected.

If you still are not sure that your PC system is affected with malware, then check your computer for the common symptoms of this infection:

• your browser shows ads where previously you have never seen;
• Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer, MS Edge and Google Chrome displays a lot of undesired ads;
• web browser settings such as startpage and search provider are hijacked;
• your antivirus software detects an infection;
• Internet connection may be slow.

While the Idle Buddy is active, you won’t be able to revert back your PC settings. But this does not mean that you should just ignore it or get along with this fact. Because this is not the best option, due to the Idle Buddy virus you can have problems with your system and internet browsers, unwanted advertisements and even privacy info theft.

We strongly recommend that you perform the tutorial below that will allow you to remove Idle Buddy virus using the standard features of Windows and some proven free software.

Idle Buddy virus removal guide

Most often this malicious software requires more than a simple uninstall through the use of Microsoft Windows Control panel in order to be fully deleted. For that reason, our team developed several removal solutions that we’ve summarized in a detailed guidance. Therefore, if you have the Idle Buddy virus on your computer and are currently trying to have it deleted then feel free to follow the step-by-step guide below in order to resolve your problem. Read this manual carefully, bookmark or print it, because you may need to shut down your web browser or restart your machine.

To remove Idle Buddy, perform the following steps:

1. Uninstall Idle Buddy associated software by using Windows Control Panel
2. How to get rid of Idle Buddy with Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM)
3. Get rid of Idle Buddy with HitmanPro
4. Automatically remove Idle Buddy virus with Malwarebytes
5. Remove Idle Buddy virus from Google Chrome
6. Delete Idle Buddy virus from Internet Explorer
7. Remove Idle Buddy virus from Mozilla Firefox
8. How to stay safe online
9. To sum up

Uninstall Idle Buddy associated software by using Windows Control Panel

It is of primary importance to first identify and delete all potentially unwanted apps, adware applications and hijackers through ‘Add/Remove Programs’ (Microsoft Windows XP) or ‘Uninstall a program’ (MS Windows 10, 8, 7) section of your Windows Control Panel.

Carefully browse through the list of installed programs and get rid of all questionable and unknown software. We recommend to click ‘Installed programs’ and even sorts all installed apps by date. After you’ve found anything suspicious that may be the virus related files, folders and registry keys or other potentially unwanted application (PUA), then select this application and click ‘Uninstall’ in the upper part of the window. If the dubious program blocked from removal, then use Revo Uninstaller Freeware to completely remove it from your machine.

How to get rid of Idle Buddy with Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM)

Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM) is a free program for Windows OS to find and remove potentially unwanted apps, adware, harmful internet browser plugins, browser toolbars, and other unwanted apps such as virus related files, folders and registry keys, installed on your personal computer.

Installing the Zemana Free is simple. First you will need to download Zemana Anti-Malware from the following link.

When the download is finished, close all programs and windows on your computer. Double-click the set up file called Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup. If the “User Account Control” dialog box pops up like below, click the “Yes” button.

It will open the “Setup wizard” which will help you set up Zemana on your PC. Follow the prompts and don’t make any changes to default settings.

Once install is complete successfully, Zemana Anti Malware will automatically start and you can see its main screen as displayed below.

Now click the “Scan” button . Zemana Free program will scan through the whole personal computer for the Idle Buddy virus related files, folders and registry keys. While the Zemana Free tool is checking, you can see number of objects it has identified as being infected by malicious software.

When the system scan is finished, the results are displayed in the scan report. You may remove threats (move to Quarantine) by simply click “Next” button. The Zemana Anti-Malware will start to remove virus and other kinds of potential threats such as malicious software and potentially unwanted apps. When the cleaning procedure is complete, you may be prompted to reboot the computer.

Get rid of Idle Buddy with HitmanPro

Hitman Pro is a free removal utility that can scan your computer for a wide range of security threats such as adware, malicious software, PUPs as well as virus and other security threats. It will perform a deep scan of your PC including hard drives and Windows registry. After a malware is found, it will allow you to delete all detected threats from your personal computer by a simple click.

Click the following link to download Hitman Pro. Save it on your Microsoft Windows desktop or in any other place.

When the downloading process is done, open the directory in which you saved it and double-click the Hitman Pro icon. It will launch the HitmanPro utility. If the User Account Control prompt will ask you want to start the program, click Yes button to continue.

Next, press “Next” to perform a system scan with this tool for the virus and other malicious software and PUPs. During the scan Hitman Pro will scan for threats exist on your computer.

As the scanning ends, HitmanPro will create a list of undesired applications such the Idle Buddy, as displayed on the image below.

You may get rid of items (move to Quarantine) by simply press “Next” button. It will display a prompt, click the “Activate free license” button. The HitmanPro will remove virus and other kinds of potential threats such as malware and potentially unwanted apps. When disinfection is finished, the utility may ask you to restart your PC system.

Automatically remove Idle Buddy virus with Malwarebytes

You can get rid of Idle Buddy virus automatically with a help of Malwarebytes Free. We recommend this free malicious software removal tool because it can easily get rid of viruss, adware, potentially unwanted software and toolbars with all their components such as files, folders and registry entries.

1. Download MalwareBytes on your Microsoft Windows Desktop by clicking on the link below.
   
   

   Malwarebytes Anti-malware
   326382 downloads
   Author: Malwarebytes
   Category: Security tools
   Update: April 15, 2020
   
2. Once downloading is complete, close all apps and windows on your PC. Open a folder in which you saved it. Double-click on the icon that’s named mb3-setup.
3. Further, click Next button and follow the prompts.
4. Once setup is finished, click the “Scan Now” button to start scanning your personal computer for the Idle Buddy virus and other malicious software and potentially unwanted software. When a malware, adware or potentially unwanted programs are detected, the number of the security threats will change accordingly.
5. As the scanning ends, MalwareBytes AntiMalware will open a list of found items. Review the report and then press “Quarantine Selected”. After the procedure is finished, you may be prompted to restart your system.

The following video offers a steps on how to delete hijacker infections, adware and other malicious software with MalwareBytes Free.

Remove Idle Buddy virus from Google Chrome

If Google Chrome internet browser settings are affected by Idle Buddy then ‘Reset Chrome’ is a way which allows to return the browser to its factory state. To reset Chrome to the original defaults, follow the guide below.

1. First, start the Chrome and press the Menu icon (icon in the form of three dots).
2. It will show the Chrome main menu. Select More Tools, then press Extensions.
3. You’ll see the list of installed addons. If the list has the extension labeled with “Installed by enterprise policy” or “Installed by your administrator”, then complete the following steps: Remove Chrome extensions installed by enterprise policy.
4. Now open the Google Chrome menu once again, click the “Settings” menu.
5. Next, press “Advanced” link, which located at the bottom of the Settings page.
6. On the bottom of the “Advanced settings” page, press the “Reset settings to their original defaults” button.
7. The Google Chrome will display the reset settings dialog box as shown on the image above.
8. Confirm the browser’s reset by clicking on the “Reset” button.
9. To learn more, read the blog post How to reset Chrome settings to default.

Delete Idle Buddy virus from Internet Explorer

By resetting Internet Explorer internet browser you return your internet browser settings to its default state. This is good initial when troubleshooting problems that might have been caused by the Idle Buddy virus.

First, launch the IE. Next, click the button in the form of gear (). It will display the Tools drop-down menu, press the “Internet Options” as shown in the following example.

In the “Internet Options” window click on the Advanced tab, then click the Reset button. The IE will open the “Reset Internet Explorer settings” window as shown on the image below. Select the “Delete personal settings” check box, then press “Reset” button.

You will now need to restart your personal computer for the changes to take effect.

Remove Idle Buddy virus from Mozilla Firefox

If Mozilla Firefox web browser settings are hijacked by the Idle Buddy , then ‘Reset Firefox’ could solve this problem. It will save your personal information like saved passwords, bookmarks, auto-fill data and open tabs.

Start the Mozilla Firefox and press the menu button (it looks like three stacked lines) at the top right of the web-browser screen. Next, click the question-mark icon at the bottom of the drop-down menu. It will show the slide-out menu.

Select the “Troubleshooting information”. If you’re unable to access the Help menu, then type “about:support” in your address bar and press Enter. It bring up the “Troubleshooting Information” page as displayed on the screen below.

Click the “Refresh Firefox” button at the top right of the Troubleshooting Information page. Select “Refresh Firefox” in the confirmation prompt. The Mozilla Firefox will start a process to fix your problems that caused by the virus related files, folders and registry keys. After, it’s finished, press the “Finish” button.

How to stay safe online

If you surf the Net, you can’t avoid malvertising. But you can protect your web browser against it. Download and run an ad-blocking program. AdGuard is an ad blocking which can filter out a large number of of the malicious advertising, stoping dynamic scripts from loading malicious content.

Download AdGuard on your Windows Desktop from the following link.

After downloading it, launch the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” screen as displayed on the image below.

Follow the prompts. After the installation is finished, you will see a window as displayed on the image below.

You can click “Skip” to close the setup program and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” button to see an quick tutorial that will help you get to know AdGuard better.

In most cases, the default settings are enough and you don’t need to change anything. Each time, when you run your PC system, AdGuard will run automatically and block unwanted ads, as well as other harmful or misleading web sites. For an overview of all the features of the application, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the AdGuard icon, which is located on your desktop.

To sum up

Now your PC system should be clean of the Idle Buddy virus. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you block unwanted pop-up advertisements and unwanted harmful web-sites) and Zemana (to periodically scan your PC for new malicious software, browser hijackers and ad-supported software). Make sure that you have all the Critical Updates recommended for MS Windows operating system. Without regular updates you WILL NOT be protected when new hijackers, malicious programs and ad supported software are released.

If you are still having problems while trying to remove Idle Buddy virus from your PC system, then ask for help here.