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ByteFence Anti Malware
Browser Hijacker | 03/22/2019

ByteFence Browser Redirect Removal Instructions-Virus Removal Guidelines

About: ByteFence Anti malware is legitimate software that claims to protect the system against malware, detect & remove them. However, the program gets stealthily installed with other bundled software, alters browser settings & causes unwanted redi...  Read More  

| Browser Hijacker | ByteFence Browser Redirect Removal Instructions-Virus Removal Guidelines

What is ByteFence Anti Malware

ByteFence Anti Malware is the latest menacing feather in the world of Browser Redirectors that is stealthily invading systems & targeting settings of popular browsers globally. It manipulates default home-page & browser settings without users’ consent and blocks the possibility of finding required information as the search results are continuously redirected to https://search.yahoo.com.

Temp 0 ByteFence

Developed by Byte Technologies LLC & powered by Reason Cyber-Security LTD, ByteFence disguises as legitimate anti-malware software. It claims to provide –

  • Protection against malware, spyware & crapware for free.
  • Detect & remove Trojans, Viruses, Worms & other high-risk malware.
  • 24×7 real-time protection against dangerous infections & unwanted software for free

By professing these Cyber Security services, it is easily taking the users into confidence that it delivers superior adware & malware protection. The irony is that users are unaware of its intentions & installing it at a great place, which leads to unexpected browser modifications, unwanted redirects & appearance of infuriating ads.

Impacted users are looking for convenient & effective ByteFence redirect removal instruction. In case you are experiencing exasperating browser redirects, you may refer to our detailed Removal instruction for byteFence malware given below.

Threat Behavior- ByteFence Anti Malware

Usually distributed as a bundle with other software, ByteFence Anti Malware is classified as Potentially Unwanted Program (PUP).  The major difference between direct installations & bundled installations is that ByteFence arrives on a system bundled with utilities like media players, archives, downloader or fake flash player updates.

Temp 1 ByteFence

ByteFence Redirect introduces itself on your PC with no notice as its installation process keeps running in the background & you will suddenly receive BytefEnce Anti Malware introduced to the programs.

Upon establishment on a system, the executable file of this program named as bytefence.exe is formed in “C:\Program Files” subfolder, which ensures that the program keeps running.

Following its successful installation as third-party software, it begins to modify default browser search engine, home page & new tab settings & replaces them with search.yahoo.com. Sadly, the users might not be able to find that ByteFence is responsible for these unapproved alternations in their systems.

Other Threats Posed By ByteFence Anti Malware

  • Unexpected & unapproved modifications in browser settings significantly deteriorate the internet browsing experience.
  • Any attempt to surf through the internet or simply opening a new tab continuously redirects the searches to search.yahoo.com
  • ByteFence installs another malicious browser toolbar that triggers continuous redirects.
  • The Redirects generate illicit revenue for the developers by redirecting searches to certain websites, hence crucially increasing traffic.
  • In spite of providing promised features, ByteFence causes infuriating redirects, tracks online browsing activity & bombards screen with ads to generate illegitimate profit.

Privacy Policy of ByteFence Anti Malware

As per the privacy policy of this devious application, it collects:

1.Personal Information: This includes identifiers such as-

  • IP address
  • User ID
  • Name, Contact Number, E-mail address

Privacy Policy ByteFence

2.Non-personal Information: This includes technical information of the system like:

  • Operating System
  • Browser Type & Version
  • Files & URLs uploaded for scanning
  • Date of Installation of the Software
  • Date & Time of Launching, Scanning, Updating & Uninstalling the software
  • Country (based on IP address)

The motive behind collecting the information is to:

  1. Process the information for marketing purposes
  2. Improve services & internal purposes such as debugging & security.
  3. Share information with third parties for maintenance, analysis, payment & development services.

You should be exceptionally careful while you agree to install/download free software or apps. Always remember nothing comes free; everything has a price.

How did ByteFence Browser Redirect invade your system?

The cybercriminals use various strategies for malware distribution which include –

  1. Software Bundling: Software bundling is the process in which a malicious program is distributed with other free software, to get an unnoticed entry into your computer system. When a user installs a free application, the malicious programs gain a front door entry with the free application, the user has downloaded. Thus, it is a good idea to keep an eye on the installation screens while installing these free applications.
  2. Infected Storage Devices: Your system can also get infected by using removable media such as USB hard drives and jump drives without scanning them with an anti-virus.
  3. Spam Emails – Spamming is the most economical and common method used for the distribution of such malware. The targeted users get genuine-looking emails which contain .doc, .txt, and other similar attachments. These attachments can be named as anything which can grab the user’s attention and triggers him/her to open the attachment. As soon as the user opens this attachment, the malware infects the user’s computer system.
  4. Malicious Websites or Malevolent Advertisements: The malicious websites are the ones which are created just for promoting the malware infections. Such websites include but are not limited to porn sites, torrent sites and other free downloading platforms. By visiting such websites, the adware infects the user’s computer without permission. Fake advertisements and updates like Flash player and windows updates which ask the user to update to the latest version are a few examples. When the users click on such links, their computer system gets infected. That is why it is highly recommended to resist clicking on such links. Also avoid clicking on advertisements offering free stuff such as Win an iPhones, cars or free overseas trips etc.

Threat Summary

Name: ByteFence

Browsers Affected: Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, Safari

Targeted Operating System: Windows & MAC

Category: Browser Redirector/Hijacker

Symptoms:

  • Default homepage, new tab and search engine are replaced by https://search.yahoo.com.
  • The appearance of exasperating sponsored ads and pop-ups

How to remove ByteFence Anti Malware Redirect?

STEP A: Remove malicious extensions from your browser

Google Chrome

  1. Open Google Chrome and click on the three vertical dots (Google chrome menu icon ) i.e.Menu option which is located at the upper right corner of the Chrome Window.
  2. Find and click on More tools from the drop-down menu that is displayed & select Extensions or you can open a Chrome window and type “chrome://extensions” in the address bar.google chrome menu options
  3. Check the developer mode option which is located opposite to extensions heading on the top of the Chrome window. By enabling the developer mode, additional details and option related to all the installed extensions will be displayed. One of the details that will be displayed is the ID. ID is the folder name created by the extension at the location “C:\Users\USERNAME\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Extensions”.enable chrome developer mode
  4. Locate the extension you want to uninstall or delete. Copy and paste the folder name opposite to the ID Tag of that extension into a notepad file. In this case the folder name is “ByteFence Anti Malware”copy the extension folder name in Chrome
  5. Now, uncheck the enabled option next to the extension in question. Make sure you also click the trash icon to delete the extension from the browser. It is important to note that even after uninstalling and deleting the extensions from the browser, the extension might not uninstall properly. Thus, it is a good practice to make sure that we have deleted the folder as mentioned in step 3.delete the malicious extension from Chrome
  6. Make sure that you have made the hidden files and folders visible.
  7. Open My Computer and go to “C:\Users\USERNAME\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default\Extensions”. Now, look for folder with the name as specified in Step 4 i.e. “ByteFence Anti Malware”. Delete the folder if present.show hidden files and folder
  8. Close and reopen the browser. It is also advisable to restart your computer once done.

Mozilla Firefox

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox, click on three horizontal lines (Mozilla icon ) at the top right corner of the Firefox Window and select the Add-ons option.Mozilla Firefox menu
  2. On the Add-ons manger page, select and click on the Extensions tab as shown below.FireFox manage Add-ons
  3. Find the extensions related to ByteFence Anti Malware and click on the remove button.
  4. In addition, try to remember how the extension got downloaded on your computer system. If this extension was bundled with some other software, then make sure to delete that as well.

Internet Explorer

  1. Open Internet Explorer, Click on the Gear icon (IE menu icon ) which is at the top right corner of the Internet Explorer Window.
  2. From the newly appeared dropdown menu, click on the option that reads Manage Add-ons.Internet explorer settings menu
  3. A new window will appear on the screen. On this window choose the option that reads Toolbar and Extensions. Under the Show option, select the option that reads “All add-ons”. This option will allow you to see all the browser extensions. Mozilla-manage add-ons toolbars and extensions page
  4. Select the Extension related to ByteFence Anti Malware and click on the Disable button which is at the bottom right of the computer screen.

IE toolbar and extensions in Manage add-ons

Apple's Safari

  1. On your Mac Desktop, click on the option that reads “Safari”.
  2. A drop down menu will appear as shown below. From this menu chose the option that reads “Preferences”.Safari menu extension options
  3. The Preferences window will appear on the screen, where the list of all your safari extensions will be shown.Safari extensions window
  4. On the list displayed at the left side of the screen, select the Extension you want to uninstall.
  5. Click on the Uninstall button to get rid of the extension.uninstall a program from Safari

STEP B: Show Hidden Files and Folders

Windows 7

  1. Left click on the Organize button on the Windows Explorer. A drop-down menu will appear.
    Folder and search options in windows 7
  2. On this menu left click on the option that reads “Folder and search options” as shown above. A folder options dialogue box will appear.
  3. On the View tab under the Advanced settings, Check the option that reads “Show hidden files, folders, and drives” and uncheck the option that reads “Hide protected operating system files“.
    Windows view tab advanced settings
  4. Click on the “OK” button to save your changes. This will make all the hidden files and folders visible to you.

Windows 8 and 10

  1. On the file explorer toolbar, click on the View
    windows 8 file explorer toolbar
  2. In the Show/hide section, Click on the “Hidden items” checkbox.
  3. Click on the options button.Windows explorer options button
  4. Under folder options, click on the “View” tab.
    Windows 8 - hide protected operating file system option
  5. Uncheck the “Hide protected operating system files” option.
  6. Click the “OK” button to save your changes.

STEP C:  How To Reset Your Browser

Mozilla Firefox

  1. Open Mozilla Firefox and click on the three horizontal lines (Mozilla Menu icon ) which are at the top right corner of the computer screen.
  2. A Drop down menu will be displayed. On this menu click on the “Help” (Mozilla help icon) button as shown in the image below. The Help menu will be displayed on the screen.Mozilla firefox menu screenshot
  3. From this menu click the option that reads “Troubleshooting information“. A new tab will open up with the <strong”>Troubleshooting information.
    Choose troubleshooting information from Mozilla Firefox menu
  4. On the Troubleshooting Information page, click on the button that reads “Refresh Firefox” as shown in the image below.Mozilla reset option
  5. The “Refresh Firefox” message box will pop up on the screen. On this message box click on the “Refresh Firefox” button.Refresh Firefox
  6. After this Firefox will close itself and a new window will be displayed which will list the information that is imported. Click on the option that reads “Finish” to complete the task.

Google Chrome

  1. Open Google chrome and click on the three vertical dots (Menu Icon-Chrome ) which is at the top right corner of the computer screen. A drop down menu will appear on the screen. From this menu choose the option that reads “Settings”.Google Chrome menu
  2. The Chrome’s settings window will be displayed on the screen. On this screen scroll through the bottom of the page and click on the option that reads “Advanced option” as shown below.Google Chrome advance settings
  3. The Advanced setting options will be displayed on the screen. Scroll through the list of options till you find the “ Reset browser settings” section. Click on the icon as shown below.Reset Chrome option
  4. The reset dialogue box will pop up on the screen. From this dialogue box click on the button that reads “Reset”.

Internet Explorer

  1. Open Internet Explorer and click on the gear icon (Internet explorer gear icon ) which is at the top right corner of the browser screen. A drop down menu will be displayed on the screen. From this drop down menu, click on the option that reads “Internet options”.IE - internet options
  2. The “Internet options” dialogue box will be displayed. Click on the “Advanced” tab. In the Advanced tab click on the button that reads “Reset” as shown in the image below. The “Reset Internet Explorer Settings” section will be displayed on the screen. Now click on the button that reads “Reset” .Precautions: In this dialogue box make sure to uncheck the “Delete Personal settings” option to save your passwords and other important data.Reset Internet Explorer settings
  3. When it’s done, click on the button that reads “Close” to complete the task. Now close and reopen your browser.Close Reset Internet Explorer

Tips to prevent your computer system from getting infected from ByteFence Anti Malware Browser Redirect-

  1. Keeping the Operating System Updated- In order to remain protected and avoid such infections, it is recommended to keep your Operating System updated by enabling the automatic update on your system. The systems with outdated or older versions of Operating System become an easy target for the attackers.
  2. Resist clicking on spam emails – One of the major techniques used for malware distribution is forwarding spam emails to the user. The system gets infected as soon as the user clicks on the attachment. These emails appear to be genuine, so be aware and resist falling for these tricks.
  3. Keep an eye on third-party installations- It is quite important that you take due care while installing any third party applications for they are the major source of such infections. Such malware programs come bundled with the free applications thereby requiring the user to remain cautious.
  4. Regular periodical backup- In order to keep your data and files safe, it is recommended to take regular back up of all your data and files either on an external drive or cloud.
  5. Use Anti-Virus Protection- We strongly recommend the use of antivirus protection/internet security in your PC like Hitman Pro and Vipre so that it remains safe.
  6. Enable the Ad Blocker/Popup Blocker in your browser- Enabling the popup blocker/ ad blocker in your chosen browser will help you to stay protected from annoying adware.

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