Launchpage.org Virus - How to remove

Launchpage.org is a malicious website. It hijacks browsers, replaces their new tab/home pages, and takes over their search engine settings. It controls web search results, opens unexpected websites, and tracks the browsing habits of its users.

According to data from SimilarWeb, Launchpage.org used to get around 10 million visits every single month – that would have been a lot of infected computers. By now, the popularity of the Launchpage.org virus has vaned, but it remains an unfortunately successful browser hijacker.

This site is rampaging in Indonesia, India, Brazil, and the Philippines. Its clone, the Yeadesktop.com parasite, is also dominant in Indonesia, but it is not as widely spread.

If you are more comfortable in reading removal instructions in your native language, we invite you to visit Spanish or Portuguese versions.

People don’t use Launchpage.org because they like it – rather, they either don’t realize that their browser is infected, or they don’t know how to fix it.

That’s great for the Launchpage.org virus, which benefits from being installed for as long as possible. The fake search engine shows ads that are mixed in with genuine search results, so it looks like any search engine but with fewer features and more ads. The more users Launchpage.org gets, the more money they make from all the ads being shown to people.

Launchpage.org should be removed as soon as it’s discovered:

Effects of the hijacking	Browser’s default home page is set to Launchpage.org, more pop-up ads and redirects in the browser.
Sources of the infection	Freeware bundlers and infected installers, programs downloaded from unreliable software download sites, malicious ads.
Possible harm	Launchpage.org may lead you to dangerous websites (for example, scam sites), it might disrespect your privacy, it takes away customization from your browser.
How to get rid of Launchpage.org	Delete junkware (you can do that with antivirus apps, such as Combo Cleaner for Mac, Spyhunter for PC, and others), uninstall suspicious browser extensions, restore browser settings.

How Launchpage.org malware works

Launchpage.org is a website, but it works together with browser extensions. These extensions hijack browser settings and force the browsers to open Launchpage.org.

Of course, the Launchpage.org virus is not alone. For example, the Default-search.net infection shares a lot of similarities with it, with almost identical global distribution and popularity. If your computer got infected with Launchpage.org, then Default-search.net might also be familiar to you. Both hijackers use the same strategy of invading browsers and replacing their search engines.

Here are some of the symptoms of a Launchpage.org infection:

• Changed browser settings, such as the home page, new tab page, etc.
• Excessive ads, pop-ups, redirects to unfamiliar or unwanted sites.
• Less visible but still important, tracking of your data online.

Launchpage.org virus has been said to wrongfully alarm people with technical support scams, fake surveys and lotteries that lead to scam sites and malware, and similar malicious ads.

Another problem is that Launchpage.org can show intrusive advertisements. It can feel like your computer is infected with a serious virus – even though Launchpage.org is but a humble newtab hijacker.

Browser hijackers often have a lot of bad ads that they show with no regard for the safety of their users. The strategy of  malvertising has become a favorite for many hackers and scammers. As a result, plugins for browsers, rogue security software, and other junkware have started distributing misleading and even malicious online content.

One of the biggest problems with having your search engine hijacked by the Launchpage.org virus is that it can track your search history and your browsing history. And, unlike sites such as Google or Bing, Launchpage.org has no accountability and gives you no option to delete your search history.

We are concerned that Launchpage.org has neither a EULA nor a Privacy Policy document. Without these terms and conditions, it’s even harder to trust that the site will respect the privacy of your search queries and other information.

Most browser hijackers talk about what they do with the data that they collect about their users. The majority share it with advertisers in order to improve the effectiveness of targeted ads. After all, profit is the motive of almost every malware infection.

How computers are infected with the Launchpage.org virus

Launchpage.org has no distinct identity and offers no features that would make it worth using, so it’s very unlikely that anyone uses it voluntarily. And yet, the site still gets hundreds of thousands of visits monthly. How?

Thanks to a technique called bundling, the distribution of malware together with free programs have become extremely easy. If you download free programs from shady, unreliable websites and are not attentive during setup, you might accidentally allow adware to be installed on your device. To avoid this, always pick advanced/custom installation settings and carefully check every button and every checkbox to catch junkware that might want to sneak in.

Ads online might also promote Launchpage.org (as they do other browser hijackers). These ads are often designed in such a way that they can trick people into installing apps and extensions without meaning to.

If you are not familiar with how to remove malware, it might be difficult to eliminate the Launchpage.org virus on your own. To help you out, we have constructed user-friendly instructions. An alternative is to use an anti-malware tool that will detect all of the infections. Spyhunter (PC), Combo Cleaner (Mac) are tools that will not only clean your system from Launchpage.org virus, they will also protect you from malware threats in the future. Other professional programs work, too.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Complete these steps to remove Launchpage.org from the web browser

Since Launchpage.org is categorized as a browser hijacker, the main goal is to remove it from your web browser. It does not include an executable that can be removed from the Control Panel or OSX applications, however, it might be installed together with other undesirable programs like adware or PUPs.  This malware operates as a browser extension, thus you should follow the following steps to get rid of it.

Restore browser settings

TopHow To remove Launchpage.org Virus from Google Chrome:

• Click on the 3 horizontal lines icon on a browser toolbar and Select More Tools→Extensions
  
• Select all malicious extensions and delete them.
  
• Click on the 3 horizontal lines icon on a browser toolbar and Select Settings
  
• Select Manage Search engines
  
• Remove unnecessary search engines from the list
  
• Go back to settings. On Startup choose Open blank page (you can remove undesired pages from the set pages link too).
• If your homepage was changed, click on Chrome menu on the top right corner, select Settings. Select Open a specific page or set of pages and click on Set pages.
  
• Delete malicious search websites at a new Startup pages window by clicking “X” next to them.
  

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings

If you are still experiencing any issues related to Launchpage.org Virus, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.

• Click on a Chrome’s menu button (three horizontal lines) and select Settings.
• Scroll to the end of the page and click on theReset browser 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 Launchpage.org Virus from Firefox:Top

• 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 Launchpage.org Virus 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.
  
• If your homepage was changed, click on the Firefox menu in the top right corner, select Options → General. Enter a preferable URL to the homepage field and click Restore to Default.
  

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings If you are still experiencing any issues related to Launchpage.org virus , 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.
  
• ChooseTroubleshooting Information on the Help menu.
  
• Click on theReset Firefox button.
  
• Click on the Reset Firefox button on the confirmation box. Mozilla Firefox will close and change the settings to default.
  

If the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program to identify malicious entries.

How to remove Launchpage.org Virus from Microsoft Edge:Top

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

• Select all malicious extensions and delete them.

• Click on the three-dot menu on the browser toolbar and Select Settings

• Select Privacy and Services and scroll down. Press on Address bar.

• Choose Manage search engines.

• Remove unnecessary search engines from the list: open the three-dot menu and choose Remove.

• Go back to Settings. Open On start-up.
• Delete malicious search websites at Open specific page or pages by opening the three-dot menu and clicking Delete.

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

• Click on Edge's menu button and select Settings. Click on the Reset Settings button on the left.
• Press the Restore settings to their default values option.

• 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.