Web Assist Plus - How to remove

Web Assist Plus is a browser extension that should warn you when the site you’re on isn’t safe. But its most noticeable feature is that it uses Webassistplus.com to hijack your internet search. While Web Assist Plus is not malicious, its developer has an iffy reputation, so you might want to avoid it.

In short about Web Assist Plus:

Type of threat	Potentially unwanted program, browser hijacker.
Problems with Web Assist Plus	Made by a company with a shaky reputation, doesn’t appear to be better than Google Chrome’s built-in security, takes over the default search engine.
How it is installed	From the Webassistplus.com website.
How to remove Web Assist Plus	Uninstall it in your browser, remove malware manually or with an anti-malware program (Spyhunter for PC, Combo Cleaner for Mac, others).

Web Assist Plus

Suspicious extension

When I first saw Web Assist Plus, I was struck by its reviews. They are all posted within a week (none before or since) and they are all written in the same style, talking about how amazing Web Assist Plus is. In other words, the reviews look fake to me. So, I decided to check Web Assist Plus out.

In short, Web Assist Plus is a browser extension that redirects search queries through Webassistplus.com to Google.com. It also scans your sites and displays the level of safety of the website.

On its home page, Webassistplus.com, Web Assist Plus is described as an online safety extension that tells you if the site you’re on is safe. Oh, and also,  changing your default search engine to Bing. I had just written about a very similar extension (Website Security Checker), so, naturally, I was suspicious. Is this just another redirect virus?

Webassistplus.com search redirects

After installing Web Assist Plus, it set itself as my new default search engine. Now, whenever I search the web from the address bar, Websssistplus.com answers. It immediately loads Google.com, though. If you are seeing flashes of Websssistplus.com in your browser, Web Assist Plus is why. Similar to Keysearchs.com, but less straightforward.

This makes no sense, why not let people use whatever search engine they want to use?

Strangely, Web Assist Plus opens Google.com for me because in its description it says that it redirects to Bing. In theory, Webassistplus.com could change how your search results look based on various characteristics of your computer and you as a user.

Untrustworthy developer

Web Assist Plus can access to all the websites that you visit. It can scan the webpages that are open in your browser, including everything you type. This is justified by Web Assist Plus as being required for it to function, but it’s still access to sensitive data that should only be granted to reputable and trusted companies.

Is Web Assist Plus trustworthy? It’s by Innovana Thinklabs Limited. A site of the same name offers various ITL security and utility products, some of which are detected as Deceptive, Malware, Riskware, and Unwanted (ITL Driver Updater). So, no, Web Assist Plus isn’t very trustworthy.

Security features

Still, how does Web Assist Plus make use of its access? Does it actually help people?

Once I pinned my Web Assist Plus icon (otherwise, it hides under the puzzle-shaped button), it could start displaying the status of the site I’m on: green, yellow, or red.

Web Assist Plus definitely detects with the yellow icon when the site that I visit lacks encryption. This is the thing that’s indicated by the padlock icon in your address bar. These sites are not always unsafe, but they’re not as private as encrypted sites. Good job, Web Assist Plus, but this is not adding anything when the padlock indicator already exists.

To test Web Assist Plus, I tried some sites that I knew were deceptive. But I didn’t find one that Web Assist Plus would block or mark with a red icon. Even when Google Chrome freaked out that I was trying to visit a potentially dangerous site, Web Assist Plus didn’t see a problem. So, um, at least Web Assist Plus won’t be very intrusive, eh?

How to remove Web Assist Plus

If you like using Web Assist Plus, that’s fine, but just keep in mind that it is by a commercial company (so, it has to make money somehow, likely by selling your data and showing you ads) that has a reputation for releasing deceptive software.

You can use an anti-malware program, such as Spyhunter for Windows, Combo Cleaner for macOS, and others to check your computer for malware and to remove that malware.

You can uninstall Web Assist Plus manually, too. You can find the instructions below. While you’re doing that, check all of your extensions and remove all those that you don’t use and that you didn’t install yourself (though you can leave first-party extensions without worrying).

Automatic Malware removal tools

Remove unwanted extensions

TopRemoving Web Assist Plus from Chrome

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Google Chrome window. Select “Settings”.
  
• Click “Extensions” on the left menu bar.
• Go through the extensions list and remove programs you do not need, especially similar to Web Assist Plus. Click on the trash bin icon next to Web Assist Plus or other add-ons you want to remove.
  
• Press on the “Remove” button on the Confirmation window.
  
• If unsure, you can disable them temporarily.
  
• Restart Chrome.

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings

If you are still experiencing any issues related to Web Assist Plus, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on Chrome’s menu button (three horizontal lines) and select Settings.
  
• Scroll to the end of the page and click on the Reset settings button.
  
• Click on the Reset button on the confirmation box.
  

If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program.

How to remove Web Assist Plus from Microsoft Edge:Top

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Microsoft Edge window. Select “Extensions”.

• Go through the extensions list and remove programs you do not need, especially similar to Web Assist Plus. Click on the "Remove" icon next to Web Assist Plus or other add-ons you want to remove.

• Press on the “Remove” button on the Confirmation window.

• If unsure, you can disable them temporarily.

• Restart Microsoft Edge.

TopRemoving Web Assist Plus from Firefox

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Mozilla window and select the “Add-ons” icon (or press Ctrl+Shift+A on your keyboard).
  
• Go through Extensions and Addons list, remove everything Web Assist Plus related and items you do not recognise. If you do not know the extension and it is not made by Mozilla, Google, Microsoft, Oracle or Adobe then you probably do not need it.
  

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings If you are still experiencing any issues related to Web Assist Plus, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on the menu button on the top right corner of a Mozilla Firefox window. Click on the Help button.
  
• Choose Troubleshooting Information on the Help menu.
  
• Click on the Reset Firefox button.
  
• Click on the Reset Firefox button on the confirmation box. Mozilla Firefox will close and change the settings to default.
  

If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program.