Windows Problems Help Center

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

Remove Linkey Search and linkeyproject.com - Get Rid of default-search.com

Linkey appears to have affected my computer (Windows 7 Home Premium) to the point that after uninstalling some of the unwanted programs via the Control Panel. The computer stopped responding to uninstall requests at all. Also, Internet access, via IE/Yahoo search, is no longer responding. What can be done to remove the Linkey malware?

Basic information about Linkey


Linkey is a potentially unwanted web browser search redirection which is designed to modify the user's search and home pages by www.default-search.com or www.linkeyproject.com/app/ so as to direct advertising via the linkeyproject.com portal.

Screenshot of www.default-search.com




Screenshot of linkeyproject.com



Know more about Linkey 


Linkey claims itself to be compatible with all the latest versions of Internet Explorer, Chrome and Firefox. It states that it is a simple but powerful browser extension that allows you to get the best sites in one click in visualized and friendly interface. However, Linkey is a malicious program which can be downloaded through its website or bundled and distributed through 3rd party download managers. During installation, it drop many other unwanted programs like LinkeyDeals.exe to the targeted system without the user's awareness.

Once the computer is infected with Linkey,  it will change the browser setting without user's permission. When you open the browser,  Linkey will  hijack your homepage, search engine and new tab by its related websites. It will take control of your browser and generate a lot of ads and deals on your browser. It may also disable the internet access. It is capable to collect your personal information, such as online history, email address, even other private data like user accounts and password, and then send to the third party for marketing. It is suggested to remove Linkey and all its related programs completely to turn your browser to be normal. You can follow the guide below to remove this Linkey.

Instructions to Get Rid of Linkey


Method 1: Linkey manual removal


Step 1Open Windows Task Manager and close all the related running processes.

( Methods to open Task Manager: Press CTRL+ALT+DEL or CTRL+SHIFT+ESC or Press the Start button->click on the Run option->Type in taskmgr and press OK.)


Step 2: Remove Linkey from control panel.

1) On the Start menu (for Windows 8, right-click the screen's bottom-left corner), click Control Panel, and then, under Programs, do one of the following:


Windows Vista/7/8: Click Uninstall a Program.
Windows XP: Click Add or Remove Programs.

2) When you find the program Linkey, click it, and then do one of the following:

Windows Vista/7/8: Click Uninstall.
Windows XP: Click the Remove or Change/Remove tab (to the right of the program).


Step 3: Reset your browser setting

Firefox:
In the drop-down list of Firefox, go to Help and click on Troubleshooting Information.
Click on the Reset Firefox button to reset it.

Google Chrome: 
Click on the Chrome menu on the right of toolbar and then select Settings.
Scroll down to the bottom to click Show advanced settings.
Go down to the bottom and click Reset browser settings to reset Google Chrome to its default setting.


IE: 
Click Tools on the up right corner and select Internet Options.
Click on Advanced tab, press Reset button to reset IE to its default settings.

Step 4: Go to the Registry Editor and remove all the infection registry entries listed here:

(Steps: Hit Win+R keys and then type regedit in Run box to search)




HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\TabbedBrowsing "NewTabPageShow" = "1"
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main "Start Page" = "http://www.<random>.com/?type=hp&ts=<timestamp>&from=tugs&uid=<hard drive id>"
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchScopes "DefaultScope" = "{33BB0A4E-99AF-4226-BDF6-49120163DE86}"
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Clients\StartMenuInternet\FIREFOX.EXE\shell\open\command "(Default)" = "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe http://www.<random>.com/?type=sc&ts=<timestamp>&from=tugs&uid=<hard drive id>"


Method  2: Automatic Removal with SpyHunter



SpyHunter is a world-famous real-time malware protection and removal tool, which is designed to detect , remove and protect your PC from the latest malware attacks, such as Trojans, worms, rootkits, rogue viruses, browser hijacker, ransomware, adware, key-loggers, and so forth. To keep SpyHunter Anti-malware on your computer is an important way to protect your computer in a good condition. Please find the instruction as follow. 

Step 1: Press the following button to download SpyHunter.


Step 2: Save it into your computer and click on the Run choice to install it step by step.



Step 3: Click Finish then you can use it to scan your computer to find out potential threats by pressing Scan computer now!

Step 4: Tick Select all and then Remove to delete all threats.


Guide to download RegCure Pro to optimize PC 


If you are still worried about the left over of Linkey and want to clean all the unwanted registry entries,  it is recommended to use RegCure Pro. RegCure Pro is packed with the tools you need to boost your PC’s speed and performance. Featuring an intuitive interface and easy-to-use work flow, RegCure Pro scans common problem areas – and quickly and safely fixes them. As well, it has several tools and features to address other performance and computing issues.

Step 1. Install and launch RegCure Pro on your PC.


Step 2.  Select "Yes" to download and install RegCure Pro.

 

Step 3. Click "Next" to continue.


Step 4. RegCure Pro will open automatically on your screen.

RegCure Pro

 Step 5. RegCure Pro is scanning your PC for error.

 RegCure Pro2

Step 6. After scanning, choose the issues you want to fix. 

 

Note: Manual removal Linkey is very difficult. If you don’t have sufficient expertise in dealing with the manual removal, you are suggested to Install Spyhunter to auto-detect and remove viruses safely and quickly. You can also Download RegCure Pro to help you remove unneeded registry files and optimize the computer.

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