About the Cantstopbrownlines.icu Virus
Large quantities of online adverts, pop-ups, banners, and page redirects have recently been disturbing a number of web users. The source of these ads seems to be an application known as Cantstopbrownlines.icu and, in the next lines, you will learn everything you need to know about it.
In case you are wondering why your main browser (be it Chrome, Explorer, Opera or Firefox) has started to flood your screen with uncontrollable online ads, and its homepage or the default search engine has been replaced without your approval, then you should know that you most probably are dealing with a Browser Hijacker. This is a type of software which is not a direct computer threat (unlike Ransomware infections, Trojans or Viruses) but its presence in the system may lead to a lot of browsing-related issues.
Browser Hijackers like Cantstopbrownlines.icu are basically programmed to impose some changes in the main browser in order to control your web browsing experience and redirect you to pre-defined web locations. In response to the numerous questions which our “How to remove” team has received in regards to Cantstopbrownlines.icu, we’ve decided to publish a detailed removal guide. There you will find step-by-step instructions that will help you deal with this potentially unwanted application and uninstall it from any browser that might have been hijacked.
Keep in mind, though, that programs of this type might be a bit difficult to remove. Therefore, it might be a good idea to use a professional removal tool, such as the one mentioned in the guide, in order to deal with them effectively.
What can Cantstopbrownlines.icu do inside your machine?
All Browser Hijackers, in general, are tools that serve the needs of the online marketing industry. This being said, what can be expected from such programs is to carry out different marketing-related activities, such as aggressive ad-generation, page-redirects to sponsored web locations, and installation of third-party promotional tools, search engines, homepage URLs, toolbars or buttons that links to specific products and services.
The developers, associated with Browser Hijackers like Cantstopbrownlines.icu, typically receive payments every time you click on some of the displayed ads or visit a specific link. This is possible thanks to popular remuneration models such as Pay-Per-Click or Pay-Per-View. Marketing practices like this one are very common and successful, and they are not forbidden by the law.
Yet, a lot of web users find it difficult to browse the web while showered with sponsored content. Some people are disturbed by the fact that most of their search queries get automatically redirected to web pages they never had the intentions to visit. Others are concerned about the possibility of clicking on something misleading or landing a virus or malware such as a Ransomware or a Trojan while interacting with the random pop-ups, banners, and adverts. This is the reason why the majority of web users, as well as some well-reputed security professionals, classify Browser Hijackers as potentially unwanted programs.
In fact, many people struggle to remove those programs and to uninstall the imposed changes from their browser. If this is your case, we recommend you take a look at the instructions in the Removal Guide below and decide on how to deal with Cantstopbrownlines.icu.
SUMMARY:
| Name | Cantstopbrownlines.icu |
| Type | Browser Hijacker |
| Danger Level | Medium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk) |
| Symptoms | Your browser’s homepage or the main search engine may get replaced with some new components. |
| Distribution Method | Software bundling is a common method of distribution along with spam, torrents, automatic installers and shareware. |
Remove Cantstopbrownlines.icu Virus
Cantstopbrownlines.icu Android Removal guide
Cantstopbrownlines.icu Mac Removal guide.
The following guide is only for windows users, it will help our readers get rid of the unpleasant Cantstopbrownlines.icu software. Follow the instructions and complete each step for best results. If you have any questions, feel free to ask them using our comment section down below.
Preparation: Entering Safe Mode and Revealing Hidden Files and Folders
Before you proceed with the actual removal instructions, you will need to take two extra steps in order to ensure that the guide has maximum effect.
For best results, we advise our readers to boot into Safe Mode prior to attempting to remove Cantstopbrownlines.icu. If you do not know how to do that, here is a separate How to Enter Safe Mode guide.
Also, in order to be able to see any potentially undesirable files, you should reveal any hidden files and folders on your PC – here is how to do that.
Removing Cantstopbrownlines.icu From Windows
Step 1: Checking the Task Manager
Before we start deleting files related to Cantstopbrownlines.icu we want to make sure that all services related to the viruses are killed before we proceed.
Open your Task Manager by using the Ctrl + Shift + Esc keys and go to the Processes tab. Look for any suspicious processes. For example, any unfamiliar process that uses high amounts of RAM and/or CPU. If you aren’t sure if a certain process comes from malware, tell us in the comments.
Right-click on any process that you consider shady and select Open File Location. Delete anything from the file location of the process.
Step 2: Disabling Startup programs
Use the Winkey + R keyboard combination to open the Run search bar and type msconfig. Hit Enter and in the newly opened window, go to the Startup tab. There, look for suspicious entries with unknown manufacturer or ones that have the name Cantstopbrownlines.icu on them. Right-click on those, and select disable.
Step 3: Uninstalling unwanted programs
Go to Start Menu > Control Panel > Uninstall a Program. Click on Installed On to sort the entries by date from most recent to oldest and look through the programs that come at the top of the list. Right-click on any entries that appear shady and unwanted and then select Uninstall to remove them from your PC. If you see the name Cantstopbrownlines.icu in the list of programs, be sure to remove the software without hesitation.
Step 4: Checking for shady IP’s
Open your Start Menu and copy-paste notepad %windir%/system32/Drivers/etc/hosts in the search bar. In the notepad file, look below Localhost and see if there are any IP addresses there. If there are some, send them to us in the comments and we will tell you if you should take any action. [add_forth_banner]
Step 5: Cleaning-up the browsers
You will also have to uninstall any undesirable browser extensions from your browser programs. Here’s how to do that for some of the more popular browsers:
Getting rid of Cantstopbrownlines.icu from Chrome
Open Chrome and open its main menu. Go to More Tools > Extensions. Look through the list of extensions and uninstall any that you think could be suspicious. To remove them – click on the trash can icon next to each extension.
You can also use a specialized Chrome CleanUp tool if you cannot manually remove a certain extension. Here is an article where you can learn more about the CleanUp tool.
Removing Cantstopbrownlines.icu From Firefox
Open Firefox and go to its Menu. Select the Add-ons button.From the left panel, select Extensions and take a look at the different entries. Remove any of the that might be unwanted.
Removing Cantstopbrownlines.icu From Windows Internet Explorer
Once you open your IE browser, click on the Tools button at the top-right corner of the program and from the drop-down menu select Manage Add-ons. Check each one of the four different groups of add-ons and search for anything that seems undesirable. If you find anything, click on it and them select Remove.
Removing Cantstopbrownlines.icu From Windows Edge
Open the main menu of Microsoft Edge and go to Extensions. Find the extensions that you believe could be unwanted and right-click on them. Then, select Uninstall.
Step 6: Checking the Registry Editor
Open the Run search bar again and type regedit in it. Hit Enter and once the Registry Editor opens press Ctrl + F. In the search field type Cantstopbrownlines.icu and click on Find Next. Tell us in the comments if any results came up when you searched for Cantstopbrownlines.icu in your PC’s Registry.
Step 7: Deleting recent entries
For this step, you will have to open your Start Menu and copy-paste the following lines, one by one:
- %AppData%
- %LocalAppData%
- %ProgramData%
- %WinDir%
- %Temp%
Hit Enter after each one to open a file directory. In the directories, delete the most recent entries that you find there. In the Temp folder, delete all files.
Step 8: System Restore
In order to be fully sure that the unwanted software has been removed from your machine, you can also try using a Restore Point to roll back your system its last stable configuration. However, in order to do that, you would have to previously had had a restore point created. On most systems, such points get created automatically but this isn’t always the case.
- If you want to learn how to configure System Restore and how to manually create Restore Points, follow this link.
- Open your Start Menu and type System Restore.
- Click on the first result – a setup wizard should open.
- Read the brief description of the process and select Next.
- Now, choose a restore from the presented list. You can also check the Show more restore points option in order to reveal any other restore points that might be saved on your PC.
- Click on Scan for affected programs to see what programs will get deleted or restored after you use the Restore Point. (optional)
- Click on next and take and then select Finish.
- A warning window will appear telling you that once the process starts, it shouldn’t be interrupted. Select Yes and be patient as this might take some time. Do not do anything on your PC throughout the duration of the process.
Step 9: Windows Refresh/Reset
Use this method only if nothing else has worked so far as it is a last resort option. If you do not know how to do it, this separate guide will give you the information that you need.