Remove QuickSeek browser hijacker

QuickSeek is a browser hijacker, promoted as a useful extension. The hijacker is pushing potterfun.com questionable search engine and will set it as your default to force you to use it. If you find that all your searches go through potterfun.com, your computer is infected with a browser hijacker. Several hijackers push the search engine but you can check your extensions to see whether it’s QuickSeek. Browser hijackers are not serious infections but they are very annoying. They can also expose you to potentially malicious content, including scams and malware. The sooner you remove QuickSeek browser hijacker, the quicker you can return to regular browsing.

 

 

Browser hijackers are very obvious infections because they make changes to users’ browser settings. Even if users don’t immediately associate the changes with a hijacker, they will at least know that something is not right. To be more specific, browser hijackers change the homepage, new tabs, and default search engine. In this particular case, the QuickSeek hijacker will set potterfun.com as the default search engine. This means that all searches you perform via your browser’s address bar will go through potterfun.com. The changes will also be irreversible as long as the hijacker is present on the computer.

Browser hijackers make these changes in order to be able to redirect users to sponsored websites and generate revenue. Questionable search engines like potterfun.com insert sponsored results among legitimate ones. Those results lead users to dubious websites that have very little to do with what users are searching for. What’s more, some of these sites could be hosting malware or promoting scams so you could be exposed to potentially dangerous content.

If unwanted changes to settings and redirects to questionable sites are not enough, browser hijackers also have quite intrusive data collection practices. QuickSeek browser hijacker may track what you search for, what sites you visit, your IP address, etc. This information could also be shared with third parties for advertisement purposes.

If you notice this hijacker on your computer, remove QuickSeek browser hijacker using WiperSoft. While not a malicious infection, it’s still best to deal with it sooner rather than later, and using an anti-virus program is easiest because it takes care of everything for you.

How do browser hijackers install on a computer?

It should be mentioned that free program download sites are full of browser hijackers and adware, usually disguised as legitimate and useful programs. It’s a good idea to research any program before installing it. Even a quick search with a search engine like Google is usually enough to determine if a program is safe to download and install.

Software bundling is a very common way for users to install infections like browser hijackers. Hijackers are often added to popular free programs as extra offers and set to install automatically, without requiring explicit permission from users. These extra offers are optional but they are hidden in settings users don’t usually use, which stops them from deselecting the offers and preventing their installations. Because of this, software bundling is considered to be a rather deceptive installation method, and programs that use it are usually detected as potential threats by anti-virus programs.

Fortunately, these additional offers are optional and can be deselected during the installation process. Opting for Advanced (Custom) settings instead of Default (Basic) settings during installation allows you to see all offers and choose which ones to accept or decline. The installation window recommends using Default settings but if you do that, all added offers will install without your explicit permissions. If you choose Advanced settings, you will make all offers visible and have the option to deselect what you do not want. Keep in mind that legitimate programs usually do not use such deceptive installation methods so you will gain nothing useful by allowing these installations.

While these bundled offers can seem useful at first glance, permitting their installations will result in your computer being filled with junk. We should also mention that once these unwanted programs are installed, they can be challenging to remove. It’s much easier to uncheck a couple of boxes when installing programs.

Remove QuickSeek browser hijacker

Browser hijackers are not particularly serious infections but it’s still a good idea to use an anti-virus program like WiperSoft to remove QuickSeek browser hijacker. These kinds of infections can be quite persistent so automatic removal is always recommended. Once the hijacker is no longer present, you will be able to change your browser’s settings like normal.