Posted on 03/19/2014 7:11:35 AM PDT by lafroste
I made the grave mistake of downloading the app for Ask.com. The stupid thing took over my browser and is causing a variety of computer glitches. Now, instead of google, my "default" search engine is Ask.com. I find it to be totally unusable. The search results are bizarre and off topic and completely worthless. My question is how do I get rid of the d@&ned thing. It's not listed as software by my computer so I can't uninstall it. How do I get rid of this invasive and destructive parasite? Thank you for your help (I love this place)
Go to Start>Control Panel>Internet Options. Highlighted in blue should be "ask." Delete that and type in http://www.google.com.
Or you might try system restore to go back to before you downloaded the app.
That still cracks me up every time.
I tried that. It’s not listed in the tool bar either.
There should be a special ring in hell for those who put ads on software download pages that mimic the download icon.
Oracle, with their Java, is the main perp, and how this guy ended up with Ask.com on their browser.
Ellison, in Hell? I’d take those odds.
Special ring? Maybe.
I tried your suggestion. My “internet options” is frozen. I can’t access it. Another glitch that I was unaware of. BTW: I am using Firefox browser, and my OS is Windows 7.
Be careful of cnet-they have been known to deliver adware/spyware along with what you are actually interested in.
http://insecure.org/news/download-com-fiasco.html
Fina a lawyer, start a class action suit, become the lead plantiff, and make millions.
I had that happen It was awful. I googled how to get rid of Ask on another computer. I got rid of it, but can’t remember now what I did.
In most cases, third-party toolbars can be uninstalled from Firefox Add-ons Manager Extensions list, as follows:
At the top of the Firefox window, click on the buttonOn the menu bar, click on the menuAt the top of the Firefox window, click on the , and then click menu . The Add-ons Manager tab will open. Click the menu button and choose . The Add-ons Manager tab will open.
If you can't remove the toolbar from the Add-ons Manager, use the "Disable" option as a workaround, or see the Cannot uninstall an add-on article for other solutions.
System restore to a previous date
When you get ready to install your search engine use Ixquick instead of google. That is unless you like being followed.
I had this problem, and tried most of the “solutions” mentioned here, and more. None worked.
Or, rather, they’d work, and then the problem would resurface when I shut the system off and restarted it.
System restore worked.
Sorry. Can you use System Restore?
This is the right process to use. However I would follow up with Malwarebytes to root out any other malware that might have invaded your computer. I use Firefox as my default browser and have had less problem with these parasite programs.
LOL!
Below is one of my favorite threads of all time.
You don’t even need to read the guys long diatribe.
Just read the replies....
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/553341/posts
> Be careful of cnet-they have been known to deliver adware/spyware along with what you are actually interested in.
http://insecure.org/news/download-com-fiasco.html
If you lick the wrong links and use a downloader, yes. I usually lick on the link to the app designer’s webite and download it from there
My wife got hit with a redirector that Malwarebytes could not remove. Microsoft Safety Scan did the trick.
Just follow Google instructions... Then Ask.com and everything else on your computer can be replaced by Google apps... photos, videos, games, toolbars, favorites, all Googlized for your convenience and sent to the g-cloud for access by the Federal Googlement.
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