About the Window Group App
If you have had the Window Group app installed on your computer, then you have most probably started to experience various browsing disruptions as soon as it got installed. Some examples for the unpleasant effect that Window Group might have on your browsing are high number of ads, banners and pop-ups showing on your screen regardless of what site you are visiting as well as frequent redirects to different promoted pages that the pesky software is seeking to advertise to more users. Also, it is likely that this app would try to modify your browser in one way or another. Common examples here are replaced starting page, new-tab page, replaced search engine or addition of a new toolbar to the browser. This could occur on any browser – IE, Edge, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, Chrome and so on. It really is irrelevant what browser you use since Window Group isn’t exactly a browser extension (though it might initially appear as one). The correct term that should be used to describe this software piece is browser hijacker. Browser hijackers are tools used for advertising different products, sites, online shops/stores, online services, software programs and so on and so forth. The problem with those apps, though, is their highly aggressive and invasive behavior – the ads and page redirects coming from them are likely to make it really difficult for you to actually use your browser in a normal way without getting obstructed every now and then. Bear in mind that it is futile to try to close the ads by clicking on their X buttons (provided they have one) as this will likely register as a click on the ad itself and redirect you to the advertised page/site/offer. Also, even if you close one ad, another will appear in its place and things won’t really get any better. The way to handle this in such a case is to find and eliminate the hijacker from your PC. Now, this might not be the easiest of tasks because the developers of such apps usually try to make their products difficult to uninstall and remove. There is typically no built-in option for uninstalling a hijacker and a lot of things you might try in order to uninstall any other software are likely to be ineffective when applied against a hijacker. Still, there are ways to eliminate such a software component and return your browser to its normal state and here we will show you two of them. The first one is a set of instructions arranged in a several manual steps that you’d need to complete to eliminate the unwanted software element. The second method is by using the recommended anti-malware program from this page that is also available inside the guide – it can automatically deal with the hijacker for you. Of course (and we’d advise you to do that), you can also utilize both of the methods for best results.
The nature of browser hijackers
Hijackers are not like Ransomware, Spyware or Trojan Horse viruses (or any other type of software virus) in the sense that they are typically not harmful and are not supposed to cause any damage or conduct any criminal tasks while inside your PC. A hijacker app like Window Group, Search Mine, Search Marquis would surely irritate you with its presence and with the effects that it would have on your browser but it won’t try to do anything to your files or to damage your system in any way which is something you can expect from threats the likes of Trojan Horses, Worms, Ransomware and so on. Despite that, you should still be alert and cautious around Window Group or any other similar software piece. You’d need to be particularly careful with regards to the ads and page redirects initiated by this app. Some of them could easily land you on unknown and potentially hazardous online locations where you can have your computer system exposed to different forms of danger. We strongly recommend you keep away from any advertising content generated by the hijacker in order to stay safe until the removal of the undesirable app.
Installation methods
Aside from spam, malvertising and distribution through obscure and questionable sites and pages, hijackers can also get inside your PC after you install some new program without first checking its setup manager for bundled software. Browser hijackers oftentimes get added to installation packages as optional components that can be left from within the setup menu. However, most users ignore the presence of the bundled content and forget to opt-out of it. Make sure you don’t make this mistake – always check for “bonus” software components added to the installers of programs you are about to install and uncheck those of them that you consider undesirable or suspicious.
SUMMARY:
| Name | Window Group |
| Type | Browser Hijacker |
| Danger Level | Medium (nowhere near threats like Ransomware, but still a security risk) |
| Symptoms | As soon as the hijacker gets installed, it will reveal its presence by starting to affect your browsing in different irritating ways. |
| Distribution Method | Ads, spam messages to your email and social network accounts, program bundles, torrents, etc. |
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Remove Window Group Mac App
Step 1: Closing Safari (or any other browser that you may be using at the moment)
First, you will need to close your browser if it is still open. If you can’t do that normally, you will need to Force Quit it:
Open the Apple Menu and select Force Quit to do that. You can also use the ⌘ key + Option Key combination to open the Force Quit Applications dialog box. In this box, select the Safari browser (or whatever browser you are using) and then click on the Quit button. Confirm the action by selecting Force Quit again.
Step 2: Killing suspicious processes
Open Finder and go to Applications > Utilities and then open Activity Monitor. Now take a careful look at the processes there – look for any that seem suspicious, unknown and questionable. If you think that a given process may be the culprit behind the issue or may at least be related to it, highlight it with the mouse and select the i option at its top.
In the box that opens, click on Sample.
Scan the sample files with the online scanner we have on this page and if any of them get flagged as malicious, delete them and then kill their processes.
Step 3: Safely launching the browser
Hold the Shift from your keyboard and then launch Safari – holding Shift will prevent any previously opened pages to load again, just in case any of them were related to the problem.
If any problematic pages still load after you safe-launch the browser, then do the following:
Force-Quit the browser (Safari) again and then turn off your Wi-Fi connection by clicking on the Wi-Fi off option from the Mac Menu. If you are using cable Internet, simply disconnect the cable from your Mac.
Step 4: Uninstalling suspicious extensions
After you safe-launch Safari and are sure none of the previously opened pages load now, go to Preferences > Extensions.
Select and uninstall (by clicking on the Uninstall button) all extensions there that are unfamiliar to you or that you think may be suspicious. If you are not sure about a certain extension, it’s better to uninstall it – no extension is required for the normal functioning of the browser.
Step 5: Cleaning Safari
If you have other browsers aside from Safari, do the following:
In Safari, open Preferences from the browser’s menu and go to Privacy.
Select Remove All Website Data and then Remove Now. Note that this will delete all stored site data including any saved passwords and usernames. In other words, you will have to manually log-in to every site where you have a registration so make sure you remember your usernames and passwords.
Back in Preferences, click on General and see what your Safari’s homepage is. If it has been changed without your permission, change it back to what it used to be or to whatever you like it to be now.
Now go to the History menu and select the Clear History option.
Do the same to all other browsers you may have in your computer – here are examples with Chrome and Firefox.
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Cleaning Chrome
Open Chrome and open its main menu, then go to More Tools > Extensions. Click on the Remove button next to all of the extensions that you do not trust.
Next, from the main menu, go to Settings and type Manage Search Engines in the search bar. Open the result that shows up and then delete all search engines other than the one you normally use by clicking on the three-dot icon next to the other ones and selecting Remove from list.
Back in Settings, type Reset and clean up and open the option that shows up (Restore settings to their original defaults). Confirm by selecting Reset Settings.
Cleaning Firefox
Open Firefox and then open its main menu. Go to Add-ons and open the Extensions menu from the left. Look at the extensions and Remove the ones you do not trust.
Next, open the menu again, go to Help > Troubleshooting information and in the page that opens, select Refresh Firefox and then confirm the action in the window that opens.
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