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Searched as:

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Search.Assistant

Aliases of Search.Assistant (AKA):

[Panda] Adware/BlazeFind

How to Remove Search.Assistant from Your Computer

To completely purge Search.Assistant from your computer, you need to delete the files, folders, and Windows registry keys, and registry values associated with Search.Assistant. These files, folders, and registry keys are respectively listed in the Files, Folders, Registry Keys, and Registry Values sections on this page.

For instructions on deleting the Search.Assistant registry keys and registry values, see How to Remove Search.Assistant from the Windows Registry.

For instructions on deleting the Search.Assistant files and folders,
see How to Delete Search.Assistant Files (.exe, .dll, etc.)

How to Delete Search.Assistant Files (.exe, .dll, etc.)

The files and folders associated with Search.Assistant are listed in the Files and Folders sections on this page.

To delete the Search.Assistant files and folders:

Using your file explorer, browse to each file and folder listed in the Folders and Files sections.
Note: The paths use certain conventions such as [%PROGRAM_FILES%]. These conventions are explained here.
Select the file or folder and press SHIFT+Delete on the keyboard.
Click Yes in the confirm deletion dialog box.

IMPORTANT: If a file is locked (in use by some application), its deletion will fail (the Windows will display a corresponding message).You can delete such locked files with the RemoveOnReboot utility. To delete a locked file, right-click on the file, select Send To->Remove on Next Reboot on the menu, and restart your computer. You can install the RemoveOnReboot utility from here.

Files:

[%PROGRAM_FILES%]\WindowsSA\LIBCURL.dll
[%PROGRAM_FILES%]\WindowsSA\omniscient.exe
[%PROGRAM_FILES%]\WindowsSA\OmniscientHook.dll
[%SYSTEM%]\wsaupdater.exe
[%WINDOWS%]\cerbmod.dll

view mapping details

Folders:

[%PROGRAM_FILES%]\windowssa

view mapping details

Scan your File System for Search.Assistant

How to Remove Search.Assistant from the Windows Registry

The Windows registry stores important system information such as system preferences, user settings, and installed programs details as well as the information about the applications that are automatically run at start-up. Because of this, spyware, malware, and adware often store references to their own files in your Windows registry so that they can automatically launch every time you start up your computer.

To effectively remove Search.Assistant from your Windows registry, you must delete all the registry keys and values associated with Search.Assistant, which are listed in the Registry Keys and Registry Values sections on this page.

IMPORTANT: Because the registry is a core component of your Windows system, it is strongly recommended that you back up the registry before you begin deleting keys and values. For information about backing up the Windows registry, refer to the Registry Editor online help.

To remove the Search.Assistant registry keys and values:

On the Windows Start menu, click Run.
In the Open box, type regedit and click OK.
The Registry Editor window opens. This window consists of two panes. The left pane displays folders that represent the registry keys arranged in hierarchical order. The right one lists the registry values of the currently selected registry key.
To delete each registry key listed in the Registry Keys section, do the following:
- Locate the key in the left pane of the Registry Editor window by sequentially expanding the folders according to the path indicated in the Registry Keys section. For example, if the path of a registry key is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\FolderA\FolderB\KeyName1, sequentially expand the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, software, FolderA, and FolderB folders.
- Select the key name indicated at the end of the path (KeyName1 in the example above).
- Right-click the key name and select Delete on the menu.
- Click Yes in the Confirm Key Delete dialog box.
To delete each registry value listed in the Registry Values section, do the following:
- Display the value in the right pane of the Registry Editor window by sequentially expanding the folders in the left pane according to the path indicated in the Registry Values section and selecting the specified key name. For example, if the path of a registry value is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\FolderA\FolderB\KeyName2\,valueC=, sequentially expand the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, software, FolderA, and FolderB folders and select the KeyName2 key to display the valueC value in the right pane.
- In the right pane, select the value name indicated after a comma at the end of the path (valueC in the example above).
- Right-click the value name and select Delete on the menu.
- Click Yes in the Confirm Value Delete dialog box.

Registry Keys:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\interface\{491be5b7-a7f8-40ec-aad4-cba11fdfd814}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\typelib\{29358aa6-679d-44ea-8a51-59a3c6e6f811}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\appid\searchhelp.dll
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\clsid\{0f9561d0-03b2-44a3-89a6-e95e417cba25}
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\searchhelp
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\explorer\browser helper objects\{0f9561d0-03b2-44a3-89a6-e95e417cba25}

Registry Values:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\software\microsoft\search assistant, defaultsearchurl=http://websearch.drsnsrch.com/q.cgi?q=
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\run, winstart001.exe=[%WINDOWS%]\System\WinStart001.EXE -b
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\software\microsoft\search assistant, defaultsearchurl=http://websearch.drsnsrch.com/q.cgi?q=
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run, Windows SA=[%PROGRAM_FILES%]\WindowsSA\omniscient.exe
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\software\microsoft\search assistant, defaultsearchurl=http://websearch.drsnsrch.com/q.cgi?q==
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\microsoft\windows\currentversion\run, windows sa=

Scan your Windows Registry for Search.Assistant

Search.Assistant Categorized as:

Adware

Software that is designed to launch advertisements, frequently pop-up ads, on a user’s computer and/or to redirect search results to promotional Web sites. Adware programs are often built into freeware or shareware programs, where the adware creates an indirect ‘charge’ for using the free program. Sometimes a trojan can silently download an adware program from a Web site and install it onto a user’s machine.

Hacker tools, or Browser Hijackers, can also download an adware program by exploiting a web browser’s vulnerability. Browser Hijackers may tamper with the browser settings, redirect incorrect or incomplete URLs to unwanted Web sites, or change the default home page. They can also re-direct a user’s searches to “pay-to-view” (often pornographic) Web sites.

Typically, many adware programs do not leave any marks of their presence in the system: they are not listed on Start | Programs; they add no icons to the system tray; and they don’t show up on the task list. In addition, adware programs seldom provide an uninstallation procedure, and attempts at manually removing them frequently result in failure of the original carrier program.

How Did My PC Get Infected with Search.Assistant?

The following are the most likely reasons why your computer got infected with Search.Assistant:

Your operating system and Web browser's security settings are too lax.
You are not following safe Internet surfing and PC practices.

Downloading and Installing Freeware or Shareware

Small-charge or free software applications may come bundled with spyware, adware, or programs like Search.Assistant. Sometimes adware is attached to free software to enable the developers to cover the overhead involved in created the software. Spyware frequently piggybacks on free software into your computer to damage it and steal valuable private information.

Using Peer-to-Peer Software

The use of peer-to-peer (P2P) programs or other applications using a shared network exposes your system to the risk of unwittingly downloading infected files, including malicious programs like Search.Assistant.

Visiting Questionable Web Sites

When you visit sites with dubious or objectionable content, trojans-including Search.Assistant-, spyware, and adware, may well be automatically downloaded and installed onto your computer.

Detecting Search.Assistant

The following symptoms signal that your computer is very likely to be infected with Search.Assistant.

PC is working very slowly
Search.Assistant can seriously slow down your computer. If your PC takes a lot longer than normal to restart or your Internet connection is extremely slow, your computer may well be infected with Search.Assistant.

New desktop shortcuts have appeared or the home page has changed
Search.Assistant can tamper with your Internet settings or redirect your default home page to unwanted web sites. Search.Assistant may even add new shortcuts to your PC desktop.

Annoying popups keep appearing on your PC
Search.Assistant may swamp your computer with pestering popup ads, even when you're not connected to the Internet, while secretly tracking your browsing habits and gathering your personal information.

E-mails that you didn't write are being sent from your mailbox
Search.Assistant may gain complete control of your mailbox to generate and send e-mail with virus attachments, e-mail hoaxes, spam, and other types of unsolicited e-mail to other people.

Check now if your PC is infected with Search.Assistant

Also Be Aware of the Following Threats:

Adware

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