How to remove Searches Central Tab (Virus removal guide)

Searches Central Tab is a browser hijacker that affects your PC and modifies web-browser settings. It can take over your internet browser and force you to use Searches Central Tab as your home page, search provider and newtab page. When the hijacker in your computer, it can collect confidential data like search queries as well as browsing history. So, if you have realized this web-page set as your new start page, you should delete it sooner and choose a well-known search engine like Google or Bing. Try the following instructions to know how to get rid of Searches Central Tab and other unwanted applications.

After the hijack, common symptoms include:

• Modifying the Mozilla Firefox, MS Edge, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Google Chrome built-in search box and search engine to Searches Central Tab;
• Changing internet browser’s startpage to Searches Central Tab;
• Changing the ‘new tab page’ URL to launch an annoying webpage.

It is not a good idea to have an unwanted program like Searches Central Tab hijacker on your PC. The reason for this is simple, it doing things you don’t know about. The browser hijacker can collect your personal information that can be later sold to third party companies. You don’t know if your home address, account names and passwords are safe. And of course you completely don’t know what will happen when you click on any advertisements on the Searches Central Tab webpage.

Threat Summary

Name	Searches Central Tab
Type	browser hijacker, search engine hijacker, startpage hijacker, toolbar, unwanted new tab, redirect virus
Symptoms	pop-ups and new tab pages are loaded without your request you keep getting redirected to unfamiliar web pages new entries appear in your Programs folder an unexpected toolbar appears in your internet browser your web browser homepage or search engine keeps changing or is not set to Google anymor
Removal	Searches Central Tab removal guide

 

Take a deep breath. Learn everything you should know about Searches Central Tab search removal, how to remove browser hijacker from your web-browser and computer. Find the best free malicious software removal utilities here!

How to remove Searches Central Tab from Chrome, Firefox, IE, Edge

According to IT security experts, Searches Central Tab removal can be complete manually and/or automatically. These tools which are listed below will help you delete browser hijacker, malicious web browser addons, adware software and potentially unwanted software . However, if you’re not willing to install other applications to remove Searches Central Tab home page, then use tutorial below to return browser search provider by default, newtab page and home page to their previous states.

To remove Searches Central Tab, perform the steps below:

1. How to remove Searches Central Tab redirect without any software
   • Remove potentially unwanted applications using Windows Control Panel
   • Remove Searches Central Tab startpage from web browsers
2. How to automatically get rid of Searches Central Tab
   • Use Zemana Anti-Malware to delete Searches Central Tab browser hijacker
   • Scan your machine and delete Searches Central Tab with HitmanPro
   • Use MalwareBytes Free to remove hijacker infection
3. Stop Searches Central Tab redirect
4. Why has my home page and search engine changed to Searches Central Tab?
5. Finish words

How to remove Searches Central Tab redirect without any software

The following instructions is a step-by-step guide, which will help you manually remove Searches Central Tab from the Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge.

Remove potentially unwanted applications using Windows Control Panel

In order to remove potentially unwanted applications such as this browser hijacker, open the Windows Control Panel and click on “Uninstall a program”. Check the list of installed programs. For the ones you do not know, run an Internet search to see if they are adware, browser hijacker or potentially unwanted apps. If yes, delete them off. Even if they are just a programs which you do not use, then removing them off will increase your personal computer start up time and speed dramatically.

1. If you are using Windows 8, 8.1 or 10 then press Windows button, next click Search. Type “Control panel”and press Enter.
2. If you are using Windows XP, Vista, 7, then click “Start” button and click “Control Panel”.
3. It will show the Windows Control Panel.
4. Further, click “Uninstall a program” under Programs category.
5. It will display a list of all software installed on the system.
6. Scroll through the all list, and remove questionable and unknown programs. To quickly find the latest installed software, we recommend sort applications by date.

See more details in the video guidance below.

Remove Searches Central Tab startpage from web browsers

Remove unwanted extensions is a simple method to remove Searches Central Tab and restore internet browser’s settings that have been replaced by browser hijacker.

Google Chrome	Mozilla Firefox
In the top right corner, click on Chrome’s main menu button, represented by three vertical dots. Select ‘More tools’, then ‘Extensions’. Click ‘Remove’ to uninstall an extension. Click ‘Remove’ in the dialog box. You can also try to delete Searches Central Tab by reset Google Chrome settings.	Click on ‘menu’ button and select ‘Add-ons’. Go to ‘Extensions’ tab. To uninstall an add-on, click on ‘Remove’ button next to it. If you are still experiencing issues with Searches Central Tab homepage removal, you need to reset Firefox browser.
Internet Explorer	Safari
Click ‘Tools’ button in the top-right corner. Select ‘Manage add-ons’. In the drop-down menu under ‘Show’, select ‘All add-ons’. To delete an add-on, double-click it; in the new window click ‘Remove’. Another solution to get rid of Searches Central Tab from IE is reset Internet Explorer settings.	On the top menu select ‘Safari’, then ‘Preferences’. Select ‘Extensions’ tab. Select an extension you want to delete and click ‘Uninstall’ button next to it.

How to automatically get rid of Searches Central Tab

If you’re unsure how to remove Searches Central Tab browser hijacker easily, consider using automatic browser hijacker removal apps which listed below. It will identify the browser hijacker responsible for redirecting your internet browser to Searches Central Tab web site and get rid of it from your machine for free.

Use Zemana Anti-Malware to delete Searches Central Tab browser hijacker

Zemana Anti Malware is a free utility that performs a scan of your machine and displays if there are existing adware software, browser hijackers, viruses, worms, spyware, trojans and other malicious software residing on your PC system. If malware is detected, Zemana AntiMalware can automatically remove it. Zemana AntiMalware does not conflict with other anti malware and antivirus software installed on your PC.

Installing the Zemana is simple. First you will need to download Zemana Free on your MS Windows Desktop by clicking on the link below.

Once downloading is complete, close all windows on your computer. Further, launch the set up file called Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup. If the “User Account Control” prompt pops up like below, press the “Yes” button.

It will open the “Setup wizard” which will allow you install Zemana Anti-Malware on the personal computer. Follow the prompts and do not make any changes to default settings.

Once setup is finished successfully, Zemana Free will automatically launch and you can see its main window as displayed below.

Next, click the “Scan” button to perform a system scan for the browser hijacker infection related to Searches Central Tab search. A system scan can take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, depending on your machine. When a threat is detected, the number of the security threats will change accordingly. Wait until the the scanning is complete.

As the scanning ends, you can check all threats found on your PC system. Once you have selected what you wish to delete from your personal computer press “Next” button.

The Zemana will delete hijacker that changes browser settings to replace your start page, new tab and default search engine with Searches Central Tab web page and add items to the Quarantine. After the cleaning procedure is done, you can be prompted to restart your machine.

Scan your machine and delete Searches Central Tab with HitmanPro

HitmanPro is a free portable application that scans your PC for adware, potentially unwanted software and browser hijackers like Searches Central Tab and helps delete them easily. Moreover, it’ll also help you remove any malicious web browser extensions and add-ons.

Please go to the following link to download Hitman Pro. Save it directly to your MS Windows Desktop.

When downloading is complete, open the file location. You will see an icon like below.

Double click the Hitman Pro desktop icon. Once the tool is launched, you will see a screen as shown on the screen below.

Further, press “Next” button to locate browser hijacker infection related to Searches Central Tab home page. Depending on your personal computer, the scan can take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. Once the scan is complete, a list of all threats detected is prepared as shown on the screen below.

You may remove items (move to Quarantine) by simply click “Next” button. It will show a prompt, click the “Activate free license” button.

Use MalwareBytes Free to remove hijacker infection

Manual Searches Central Tab start page removal requires some computer skills. Some files and registry entries that created by the browser hijacker infection can be not fully removed. We suggest that run the MalwareBytes Free that are completely free your personal computer of hijacker infection. Moreover, this free program will help you to delete malicious software, potentially unwanted programs, adware and toolbars that your computer can be infected too.

1. Installing the MalwareBytes AntiMalware is simple. First you will need to download MalwareBytes from the following link.
   
   

   Malwarebytes Anti-malware
   326384 downloads
   Author: Malwarebytes
   Category: Security tools
   Update: April 15, 2020
   
2. When downloading is done, close all applications and windows on your computer. Open a file location. Double-click on the icon that’s named mb3-setup.
3. Further, click Next button and follow the prompts.
4. Once setup is complete, click the “Scan Now” button to perform a system scan for the Searches Central Tab hijacker infection and other web browser’s harmful plugins. Depending on your system, the scan may take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. During the scan MalwareBytes Free will locate threats present on your computer.
5. When finished, MalwareBytes will show a scan report. Next, you need to click “Quarantine Selected”. After disinfection is done, you may be prompted to restart your personal computer.

The following video offers a steps on how to remove hijackers, adware software and other malware with MalwareBytes.

Stop Searches Central Tab redirect

One of the worst things is the fact that you cannot block all those intrusive web-pages like Searches Central Tab using only built-in Windows capabilities. However, there is a program out that you can use to block unwanted web-browser redirects, advertisements and popups in any modern web-browsers including MS Edge, IE, Chrome and Mozilla Firefox. It’s called Adguard and it works very well.

Visit the following page to download AdGuard. Save it on your MS Windows desktop or in any other place.

After downloading it, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” screen like below.

Follow the prompts. Once the installation is finished, you will see a window as displayed in the following example.

You can click “Skip” to close the installation application and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” button to see an quick tutorial which will allow 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 start your computer, AdGuard will run automatically and stop unwanted ads, block Searches Central Tab, as well as other harmful or misleading websites. For an overview of all the features of the program, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the AdGuard icon, which may be found on your desktop.

Why has my home page and search engine changed to Searches Central Tab?

The Searches Central Tab like other PUPs can get added to your internet browser or computer when you visit a web site and press an Install button, or when you download and run a questionable program, or when you install free software that includes a potentially unwanted application (PUA). Be very attentive when installing any programs and make sure you deselect any options for additional programs that you do not want.

Finish words

Now your computer should be clean of the hijacker infection related to Searches Central Tab redirect. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you block unwanted popups and undesired malicious websites) and Zemana Anti-Malware (to periodically scan your PC for new malware, hijackers and adware). Make sure that you have all the Critical Updates recommended for Windows OS. Without regular updates you WILL NOT be protected when new browser hijackers, harmful programs and adware are released.

If you are still having problems while trying to get rid of Searches Central Tab from your web-browser, then ask for help here.