Chrome "ASK" is apprearing instead of Firefox on another computer
My wife's Dell laptop has been running Windows 10 for a while and Firefox as the browser. Suddenly tonight clicking on the familiar Firefox link brings up "home.tb.ask.com/index....etc" and a search bar with what looks like the Chrome logo. It links to the same email (Gmail) but the Firefox browser is gone! It won't even let me uninstall it, saying that "Firefox is running" when it isn't. Help! Thanks!
Chosen solution
You can check the target line in the Firefox desktop shortcut (right-click: Properties) to make sure that nothing is appended after the path to the Firefox program.
You can open the about:config page via the location/address bar and search for prefs that refer to ask.com. You can reset user set (bold) ask.com pref(s) via the right-click context menu to the default value.
You can open the about:config page via the location/address bar. You can accept the warning and click "I'll be careful" to continue.
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It's still Firefox. It sounds like your homepage was changed.
Bookmark and use this; Download the Mozilla Search Reset {web link} This add-on is very simple: on installation, it backs up and then resets your search preferences and home page to their default values, and then uninstalls itself. This affects the search bar, URL bar searches, and the home page.
Hi, if it comes back after doing the above, you can try these free programs to scan for malware, which work with your existing antivirus software:
- Microsoft Safety Scanner
- MalwareBytes' Anti-Malware
- Anti-Rootkit Utility - TDSSKiller
- AdwCleaner (for more info, see this alternate AdwCleaner download page)
- Hitman Pro
- ESET Online Scanner
Note that not all removal programs will detect all malware, so you may need to run several or all of them.
After removal you may need to reset your home page and search, which you can do by using FredMcD's link above.
Microsoft Security Essentials is a good permanent antivirus for Windows 7/Vista/XP if you don't already have one. Windows 8 has antivirus built-in already.
Further information can be found in the Troubleshoot Firefox issues caused by malware article.
Did this fix your problems? Please report back to us. Thank you!
I forwarded your email to my wife's computer, which is running Windows10, and started through Scribe's list. The first three found nothing, ADWCleaner was blocked by Windows Smartscreen as an "unrecognized app" and Hitman Pro came up with and deleted the malware along with 235 cookies.
We have our Fox back!
Thanks for the help.
Hello,
I am glad to hear that your problem has been resolved. If you haven't already, please select the answer that solves the problem. This will help other users with similar problems find the solution more easily.
Thank you for contacting Mozilla Support.
Chosen Solution
You can check the target line in the Firefox desktop shortcut (right-click: Properties) to make sure that nothing is appended after the path to the Firefox program.
You can open the about:config page via the location/address bar and search for prefs that refer to ask.com. You can reset user set (bold) ask.com pref(s) via the right-click context menu to the default value.
You can open the about:config page via the location/address bar. You can accept the warning and click "I'll be careful" to continue.
Modified by cor-el