Removal Guide of Speedial – Browser Hijacker

Known to belong to the list of browser hijacker, Speedial, can infect your computer system through entertaining free downloads (promoted online) and when installed, it can alter your default search engine (speedial.com)and browser home page.

Such changes on your homepage, using Speedial, will can affect:

• Your search activity for you will usually encounter a display of sponsored links and advertisement.
• It also has the ability to collect the search queries and terms you do on a regular basis.
• In short, Speedial hijack the user’s browser for the sole purpose of boosting advertisement revenue, to expand a site’s page ranking through search results and use this browser hijacker as blackhat SEO.

Although Speedial is not really a virus, technically speaking. However, due to the its malicious nature like the rootkit, where it has the ‘hook-deep’ capability in the operating system, hijack the user’s browser and commonly interrupt while the user is working/searching online. This experience is usually referred as PUP, or potentially unwanted program, by the people in this industry.

What to expect when you installed Speedial.com?

• This is an ad-supported browser hijacker where you can see more search pop-up, banner, advantage-taker, pop-under, in-text link promotions, all of these while you are browsing or using your computer online. It can infect popular web browser such as the Internet Explorer (BHO) and Chrome/Firefox (plugin). And it is spread widely as soon as it gets installed in your computer.
• The infection of browser extension can modify your default or custom settings of the browser, which goes to the search settings, home page and sometimes it can make alterations on Internet Explorer’s load-time-threshold. In effect, it will cause to place a log file in Firefox to keep executing softwares from changing the settings, aside from disable the content of the browser Security Policy (so it can allow to cross site scripting of the plugins).

So, to prevent from the Speedial invasion while you are an avid fan of free software/apps/programs online, well, you need to pay attention when installing software often! Generally, those free-software installer comes with options just like Speedial.com (the browser hijacker).

Make sure you click the Custom Installatiotn, so you can deselect those not familiar to you and avoid installing unwanted softwares. Several softwares don’t ask the user’s permission to be installed.

Steps for Speedial Removal:

1. Delete Speedial from your computer.
• To be able to remove the malicious program causing Speedial redirecting Windows Vista/XP/7, you need to click the Start button (at the left lower corner of your screen) and then choose Control Panel menu option.

• For Windows 8;

1. You can pull the mouse pointer at the right edge of the screen, choose Search then type “control panel”. You can also go to the bottom left hot corner and right-click (before this is called the start button). Choose the Control Panel here.

• Once the Control Panel menu opens, you can click the Uninstall a program option (this is under the Programs category).

• The window of the Program and Features or the Uninstall a Program on the screen will appear. Here, you can look for the installed program linked/associated with Speedial and Uninstall them. Two of the files/programs you need to uninstall is the MySearchDial, WPM17.8.0.3159, including those programs unknown to you.

2. Remove Speedial Infection from the popular search engine (Firefox, Internet Explorer and Google Chrome).

• Internet Explorer Removal of Speedial Infection

1. Activate Internet Explorer and click the gear icon at the upper right of your browser and then look for the Internet options and click it.
2. From the dialog box of Internet Options, click the Advanced tab and click the button of Reset.
3. At the section of the Reset Internet Explorer Settings, select the Delete Personal Settings by clicking the box and click on the Reset button.
4. Once the Explorer is done processing on this task, click Close button (in the dialog box). Next, close the browser and open the Internet Explorer again, to check if you completely remove Speedial.

• Firefox Removal of Speedial Infection. Resetting the Firefox on its factory default settings can help, this will save those important information such as passwords, bookmarks, browsing history, web form auto-fill info and open tabs.

1.  Locate and click the Firefox Menu button (usually in the upper-right corner of the Firefox window), and then click the Help button.
2. On the Help menu, select Troubleshooting Information. In case you can’t find or can’t access the Help Menu, in the address bar, type ‘about:support’. This will bring up the Troubleshooting information page to your screen.
3. Find and click the Reset Firefox button (this is in the upper-right corner of the Troubleshooting information page).
4. The next part is by clicking the Reset Firefox button on the new confirmation window as it opens.
5. Once you do this, you’ll notice that Firefox will close on its own and will return to its default settings. After the process is done, a window will show the list of imported information. Then you need to click Finish.
6. Be reminded, the profile of your old Firefox is saved in a folder ‘Old Firefox Data”. In case the reset didn’t work, you can restore some of the information not saved, by simply copying the files to the new profile created. Else, you can delete this folder if you don’t need it.

• Google Chrome Removal of Speedial Infection.

1. Go to the main menu of Chrome and click its icon , you’ll a drop-down menu, then select the option Settings.
2. The setting of Chrome will appear in a new window (depending on your configuration). Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the Show Advance Settings link.
3. When the Advanced Setting of Chrome is displayed, Scroll down until you reach the Reset browser settings section. Then, you can click the Reset browser settings button.
4. Once this is done, you can see a displayed confirmation dialog on your screen. Listing the components to be restored to the default setting when you continue the procedure. Then to complete the process, you need to respond by clicking the Reset button.