According to security researchers, Search Pro is browser hijacker (also known as hijackware). Browser hijacker is a type of software that changes the computer’s browser settings such as default search provider, new tab page and home page. Once started, Search Pro will modify the browser settings to hsearchprop[.]com. In this way, the Search Pro authors force users to use their web-page, and thus boost traffic of the webpage to generate revenue.
Search Pro redirects user searchers to yahoo
Most often, browser hijackers promote fake search providers by setting their address as the default search provider. In this case, Search Pro installs hsearchprop[.]com as a search provider. This means that users whose browser is affected with Search Pro are forced to visit hsearchprop[.]com each time they search in the Web, open a new window or tab. And since hsearchprop[.]com is not a real search provider and does not have the ability to find the information users need, this website redirects the user’s web browser to the Yahoo search engine.
It is not a good idea to have an unwanted program such as Search Pro on the system. The reason for this is simple, it doing things you do not know about. It can gather a wide variety of privacy information which can be later transferred to third parties. 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 Search Pro web-page.
How can Search Pro get on your personal computer
Browser hijacker and PUPs such as Search Pro usually are bundled within another application in the same setup file. The risk of this is especially high for the various free applications downloaded from the Internet. The developers of the apps are hoping that users will run the quick installation mode, that is simply to press the Next button, without paying attention to the information on the screen and don’t carefully considering every step of the setup procedure. Thus, the hijacker may infiltrate your PC system without your knowledge. Therefore, it is very important to read all the information that tells the program during installation, including the ‘Terms of Use’ and ‘Software license’. Use only the Manual, Custom or Advanced installation type. This method will help you to disable all optional and unwanted software and components.
Threat Summary
| Name | Search Pro |
| Type | PUP, browser hijacker, search engine hijacker, redirect virus, startpage hijacker |
| Affected Browser Settings | start page, newtab page URL, search engine |
| Symptoms |
|
| Removal | Search Pro removal guide |
How to remove Search Pro (removal guidance)
Most commonly hijackers requires more than a simple uninstall through the use of MS Windows Control panel in order to be fully removed. For that reason, our team developed several removal solutions that we’ve combined in a detailed tutorial. Therefore, if you have the Search Pro hijacker on your machine and are currently trying to have it removed then feel free to follow the few simple steps below in order to resolve your problem. Certain of the steps will require you to reboot your PC system or shut down this webpage. So, read this instructions carefully, then bookmark this page or open it on your smartphone for later reference.
To remove Search Pro, perform the steps below:
- How to get rid of Search Pro manually
- Automatic Removal of Search Pro
- How to block Search Pro
- To sum up
How to get rid of Search Pro manually
The following instructions is a step-by-step guide, which will help you manually delete Search Pro hijacker from the Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Edge and Microsoft Internet Explorer.
Delete dubious software using MS Windows Control Panel
We recommend that you start the PC cleaning process by checking the list of installed programs and uninstall all unknown or questionable software. This is a very important step, as mentioned above, very often the harmful applications such as adware and hijackers may be bundled with free software. Uninstall the unwanted software can delete the unwanted advertisements or browser redirect.
- If you are using Windows 8, 8.1 or 10 then click Windows button, next click Search. Type “Control panel”and press Enter.
- If you are using Windows XP, Vista, 7, then click “Start” button and click “Control Panel”.
- It will show the Windows Control Panel.
- Further, click “Uninstall a program” under Programs category.
- It will open a list of all applications installed on the machine.
- Scroll through the all list, and delete questionable and unknown apps. To quickly find the latest installed apps, we recommend sort applications by date.
See more details in the video guide below.
Remove Search Pro hijacker from browsers
Remove unwanted extensions is a easy way to remove Search Pro browser hijacker and revert back web browser’s settings which have been replaced by hijacker.
 Google Chrome |
 Mozilla Firefox |
|---|---|
You can also try to remove Search Pro browser hijacker by reset Chrome settings. |
If you are still experiencing issues with Search Pro hijacker removal, you need to reset Mozilla Firefox browser. |
 Internet Explorer |
 Safari |
Another method to delete Search Pro hijacker from IE is reset IE settings. |
|
Automatic Removal of Search Pro
If you are not expert at computers, then all your attempts to get rid of Search Pro browser hijacker by following the manual steps above might result in failure. To find and remove all of the Search Pro related files and registry entries that keep this browser hijacker infection on your personal computer, run free anti-malware software such as Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM), MalwareBytes AntiMalware (MBAM) and Hitman Pro from our list below.
How to get rid of Search Pro with Zemana AntiMalware
Zemana is free full featured malicious software removal utility. It can check your files and MS Windows registry in real-time. Zemana Anti Malware can help to delete Search Pro hijacker, other PUPs and adware. It uses 1% of your computer resources. This tool has got simple and beautiful interface and at the same time best possible protection for your computer.
- Visit the page linked below to download Zemana AntiMalware (ZAM). Save it on your Desktop.
Zemana AntiMalware
164028 downloads
Author: Zemana Ltd
Category: Security tools
Update: July 16, 2019
- At the download page, click on the Download button. Your internet browser will show the “Save as” prompt. Please save it onto your Windows desktop.
- After downloading is complete, please close all applications and open windows on your machine. Next, launch a file called Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup.
- This will start the “Setup wizard” of Zemana Anti-Malware (ZAM) onto your PC system. Follow the prompts and don’t make any changes to default settings.
- When the Setup wizard has finished installing, the Zemana Anti Malware will start and show the main window.
- Further, click the “Scan” button to perform a system scan for the Search Pro hijacker. This process can take quite a while, so please be patient. While the Zemana Free is checking, you can see count of objects it has identified either as being malware.
- After the checking is complete, the results are displayed in the scan report.
- Next, you need to click the “Next” button. The utility will get rid of Search Pro hijacker and move the selected items to the program’s quarantine. Once disinfection is finished, you may be prompted to restart the PC system.
- Close the Zemana Free and continue with the next step.
Remove Search Pro browser hijacker from web browsers with Hitman Pro
Hitman Pro is a portable application which requires no hard installation to scan for and remove Search Pro hijacker. The program itself is small in size (only a few Mb). Hitman Pro does not need any drivers and special dlls. It is probably easier to use than any alternative malicious software removal tools you’ve ever tried. Hitman Pro works on 64 and 32-bit versions of Windows 10, 8, 7 and XP. It proves that removal utility can be just as effective as the widely known antivirus programs.
Visit the following page to download the latest version of HitmanPro for Microsoft Windows. Save it on your MS Windows desktop or in any other place.
Download and use HitmanPro on your personal computer. Once started, click “Next” button to begin checking your system for the Search Pro browser hijacker. Depending on your machine, the scan can take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. While the HitmanPro program is checking, you can see count of objects it has identified as threat.
After finished, it will show the Scan Results.
Review the scan results and then click Next button.
It will show a dialog box, click the “Activate free license” button to start the free 30 days trial to remove all malicious software found.
How to remove Search Pro with MalwareBytes Free
We advise using the MalwareBytes Free. You may download and install MalwareBytes to scan for and get rid of Search Pro browser hijacker from your PC. When installed and updated, this free malicious software remover automatically scans for and deletes all threats exist on the system.
- Please go to the following link to download the latest version of MalwareBytes for Microsoft Windows. Save it to your Desktop so that you can access the file easily.
Malwarebytes Anti-malware
326380 downloads
Author: Malwarebytes
Category: Security tools
Update: April 15, 2020
- After the download is done, close all software and windows on your computer. Open a file location. Double-click on the icon that’s named MBsetup.
- Choose “Personal computer” option and click Install button. Follow the prompts.
- Once installation is finished, press the “Scan” button to locate Search Pro hijacker. This process may take some time, so please be patient. When a threat is detected, the number of the security threats will change accordingly.
- Once MalwareBytes Free has finished scanning, MalwareBytes Free will prepare a list of unwanted applications and hijacker infection. Once you have selected what you wish to delete from your personal computer click “Quarantine”. When the cleaning process is complete, you can be prompted to restart your personal computer.
The following video offers a instructions on how to get rid of browser hijacker infections, adware and other malicious software with MalwareBytes Anti-Malware (MBAM).
How to block Search Pro
It’s important to use ad blocker apps such as AdGuard to protect your personal computer from harmful web pages. Most security experts says that it’s okay to block advertisements. You should do so just to stay safe! And, of course, the AdGuard may to block Search Pro and other unwanted web-sites.
First, please go to the link below, then click the ‘Download’ button in order to download the latest version of AdGuard.
26627 downloads
Version: 6.4
Author: © Adguard
Category: Security tools
Update: November 15, 2018
After downloading is finished, start the downloaded file. You will see the “Setup Wizard” screen as displayed in the following example.
Follow the prompts. When the install is finished, you will see a window as on the image below.
You can press “Skip” to close the setup program and use the default settings, or click “Get Started” button to see an quick tutorial which 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 start your computer, AdGuard will start automatically and stop unwanted advertisements, block Search Pro, as well as other malicious or misleading webpages. For an overview of all the features of the application, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the AdGuard icon, that may be found on your desktop.
To sum up
After completing the tutorial outlined above, your computer should be free from the Search Pro browser hijacker and other malicious software. The Mozilla Firefox, Chrome, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Edge will no longer display the Search Pro web-page on startup. Unfortunately, if the step-by-step guidance does not help you, then you have caught a new hijacker infection, and then the best way – ask for help here.
