isearch.fantastigames.com Hijacker

Last Update: February 24, 2013 webmaster 0

isearch.fantastigames.com is a browser hijacker that limits your web search to its own engine. This adware controls your web browser to use its own custom search tailored to deliver ads and sponsored links. The fact that the adware can replace your home page with isearch.fantastigames.com, there is no doubt that it is exactly categorized as adware.

One method that you may catch this hijacker is through free software. Downloading programs with the adware attached to it, installs both in the same occurrence. Although, you will have very little knowledge that isearch.fantastigames.com will take over default home page of your browser. The adware also makes it difficult to reverse the changes by adding some plug-ins or extensions using various names. It makes you think that the extension is irrelevant to the hijacker. Moreover, isearch.fantastigames.com is loaded as a browser helper object (BHO) to software like Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, and Google Chrome. This gives the adware to run each time you use these programs to browse the web. It may collect data from the computer without you full consent.

To remove isearch.fantastigames.com, removing add-ons and plug-ins are not adequate. You need to scan the computer with anti-malware program to make sure that all hidden components of the hijacker will be deleted. For a complete guide, proceed to the special section below.

Type	Adware
Sub-Type	Add-on/Extension
OS Affected	Windows

What are the Symptoms of isearch.fantastigames.com Hijacker?

Redirecting home page or new tab to isearch.fantastigames.com confirms the presence of the adware. See image above for reference.

Follow these Procedures to Remove isearch.fantastigames.com

Procedure 1: Uninstall isearch.fantastigames.com from Windows Control Panel

1. To begin, click on Windows Start located at bottom left part of the screen. From the selection, click on Control Panel. This will open a Window allowing you to adjust computer settings.

2. Under Programs, click on Uninstall a program. It will open a program and features window where-in you can uninstall, change, or repair installed software.

3. Look for the name isearch.fantastigames.com or any related term. Please note that the adware may change the title anytime. Once found, please select the item you wanted to remove.

4. Click on Uninstall button to remove the program automatically.
5. If it prompts for confirmation, please click OK to proceed.

Procedure 1: Start Windows in Safe Mode with Networking

Restart your computer in Safe Mode with Networking

- After turning On the power of the computer, just before Windows start, press F8.
- From the selections, choose Safe Mode with Networking. Please use keyboard's arrow up/down to navigate between selections and press Enter to proceed.

Procedure 2: Scan and remove isearch.fantastigames.com files with MalwareBytes Anti-Malware

To remove isearch.fantastigames.com, download Malwarebytes Anti-Malware by clicking on the button below. This tool is effective in getting rid of Trojans, viruses and malware.

1. After downloading, please install the program using the default settings.
2. At the end of the installation, please make sure that it will download necessary updates.
3. Once update has completed. The tool will launch.
4. Thoroughly scan the computer and remove all threats detected by this anti-malware program.

Procedure 3: Manually remove settings created by isearch.fantastigames.com.

If the hijacker was not removed properly during the scan, you can use this guide to uninstall it from the computer. We prepared procedures to remove this unknown search program from various Internet browsers including Internet Explorer 8/9, Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome.

Uninstall isearch.fantastigames.com from Internet Explorer 8:

1. Launch the program Internet Explorer 8.
2. On top menu, please navigate to Tools > Internet Options.

3. It will open the options window; make sure that you are viewing the General tab. Look for the area that says "Search" and click the Settings button.

4. You will see a list of search providers. Select your preferred search provider and click the button Set as default to replace isearch.fantastigames.com.

5. You may now remove isearch.fantastigames.com from the list. Highlight the item and click on Remove button.

For Internet Explorer 9:

1. Launch the program Internet Explorer 9.
2. On top menu, please navigate to Tools > Internet Options.
3. On General tab, proceed to Change search defaults and click the Settings button.
4. You will see a list of search providers. Select your desired search provider and click the button Set as default to replace isearch.fantastigames.com.
5. You may now remove isearch.fantastigames.com from the list.

Instructions to remove isearch.fantastigames.com from Mozilla Firefox:

1. Launch the program Mozilla Firefox.
2. On the address bar, type about:config and press Enter on the keyboard to view the list of preferences.

3. If it display a warning message stating that the action might void your warranty, just click "I'll be careful, I promise!"

4. Type isearch.fantastigames.com (or Root Name Only) in the search box to display the list of references that were altered by the adware. Please refer to the image below.

5. There is no button to remove the preference set by isearch.fantastigames.com. All you need to do is restore it to Firefox's default settings. Right-click on the item and select Reset from the drop-down list.

6. After resetting all affected preferences, you can now restart Firefox.

7. Navigate to toolbar and on Google's Search box, click the arrow down sitting right beside the 'G' logo.

8. Click on Manage Search Engines... from the drop-down list to see all search engines installed in Firefox.
9. Choose your preferred default search provider by placing it at the top most position. Highlight the item and click on Move up until it reaches the first spot.

10. To remove isearch.fantastigames.com from Firefox, highlight on its name and click the Remove button.

Delete isearch.fantastigames.com from Google Chrome:

1. Launch the program Google Chrome.
2. Click on the Wrench or 3-Bars icon on top right corner of the browser.

3. Choose Settings from the drop down list. It will open a window containing Google Chrome settings.
4. Find the area that says "Search". This is located in the middle part of the page.

5. Click on Manage search engines. It will show a list of Search engines including the default one.
6. Mouse-over to your preferred search engine and click Make default.

7. Then, to remove isearch.fantastigames.com from Google Chrome, mouse-over to that item and click on the X mark.

Protect your PC from isearch.fantastigames.com or Similar Attack

Turn On Safe Browsing Features

Internet Explorer - Activate SmartScreen Filter

Internet Explorer versions 8 and 9 has this feature called SmartScreen Filter. It helps detect phishing web sites and protect you from downloading malicious files online. To turn on SmartScreen Filter, follow these steps:

1. Please open Internet Explorer.
2. On top menu, select Tools (IE 9). For IE 8, please look for Safety menu.
3. Select SmartScreen Filter from the drop-down list and click on Turn on SmartScreen Filter.

4. Please restart Internet Explorer.

Google Chrome's Enable Phishing and Malware Protection

With Google Chrome's Phishing and Malware Detection feature, you will have lesser risks browsing the web. It will display a warning when the site you are trying to visit is suspicious. To enable Phishing and Malware Protection, please do these steps:

1. Open Google Chrome.
2. Click on the Customize and control Google Chrome (3-Bars Icon) located on top right corner of the browser.
3. Select Settings from the drop-down list.
4. Once on the settings page, click on Show advanced settings... at the bottom of the page to see the rest of the Chrome setup.
5. Locate Privacy section and mark 'Enable phishing and malware protection'.

6. Please restart Google Chrome. New settings keep your browser safe while surfing the web.

Mozilla Firefox - Block Attack Sites and Web Forgeries

Phishing and Malware Protection is a built-in feature on Firefox version 3 or later. It warns you when a page you are trying to visit contains phishing content or an attack site designed to drop threats on the computer. To help you keep safe while browsing the Internet using Firefox, please follow this guide:

1. Open Mozilla Firefox browser.
2. On top menu, click on Tools. Then select Options from the list.
3. Select Security and put a check mark on the following items:

• Warn me when sites try to install add-ons
• Block reported attack sites
• Block reported web forgeries

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