LivePDFSearch Hijacker - How to remove

LivePDFSearch is a browser add-on that replaces your default search engine with Feed.livepdfsearch.com, tracks your browsing habits, and shows you ads. As far as I know, it does not have any useful features. Ads it’s unlikely that the people who install it do it intentionally – it seems like people allow it to infect their browsers unintentionally.

It’s recommended to remove LivePDFSearch and check your device for other infections.

LivePDFSearch in short:

Classification	Adware, browser hijacker.
How LivePDFSearch affects the browser	It changes the default search engine to Feed.Livepdfsearch.com, it tracks the user’s information, it may show pop-up ads.
How it gets installed	It may be installed by accident thanks to deceptive ads.
How to remove LivePDFSearch	Uninstall all suspicious browser add-ons, remove malware with antivirus tools (Combo Cleaner for Mac, Spyhunter for PC, others).

Problems with LivePDFSearch

It hijacks the browser

As you have probably already realized, LivePDFSearch is a pretty much useless browser extension. It gets installed, takes over the default search engine settings (which site delivers your search results if you type a search query into your address bar), and starts logging your info.

LivePDFSearch is part of a family of browser hijackers (programs and apps that make unwanted changes to web browsers) together with IncognitoSearchWeb, NuSmash, and dozens of others. It seems like it could be related to Linkury.

Here’s what LivePDFSearch does once it’s installed:

• It changes the default search engine settings. Open the browser’s main menu, Settings, Search engine to see what extension is in control of it. LivePDFSearch uses the site Feed.livepdfsearch.com. It goes to Yahoo.com.
• It logs your activities, including browsing history, search history, and technical data about your device. LivePDFSearch can use this information for interest-based ad targeting. It can make money from this.

In addition, Livepdsearch.com may ask you to allow its notifications. If you agree, then LivePDFSearch could start showing you pop-ups in the corner of your screen. These are used to display ads.

If you read LivePDFSearch’s permissions before installing it, it does warn about changing your search settings. This makes it pretty obvious as a search hijacker.

But that permission is not necessary for a hijacker. There are some that take over your searches without even replacing the search engine settings; all they need is access to your browsing history.

It tricks people into installing it

I first encountered LivePDFSearch while on a pirating site for free movies (Yesmovies). Its ad opened as a new tab in my browser. It had a Download button which led to the Chrome Web Store.

If I had been unfamiliar with this kind of ad, it would have been very confusing. It doesn’t look like an advertisement. It looks like a download page. What if some people see it and think that it’s for downloading the movies that they were watching?

Besides deceptive ads, hijackers like LivePDFSearch also come bundled with other programs. Some free programs include ads in their installers that allow the advertised programs to be installed.

The point is that people don’t install LivePDFSearch intentionally. You can’t even find it in the Chrome Web Store – you need the specific link to be able to see it. The only way to find LivePDFSearch is to get an ad for it.

How to remove LivePDFSearch ads

In order to solve the LivePDFSearch hijacking problem, you should:

1. Remove LivePDFSearch and other hijackers.
2. Block notification ads.
3. Remove all other malware.

Find and remove the LivePDFSearch extension from the extension section in the top right of your web browser. Or go into your settings as described in the bottom section. Don’t forget to turn off sync if LivePDFSearch reinstalls itself.

While you’re checking your browser settings, disable pop-up ads that are sent using notifications by blocking notifications from unwanted sites:

• Chrome – open Settings, scroll down to Site settings (under Privacy and security), click on Notifications.
• Edge (Chromium) – open Settings, click Site Permissions, Notifications.
• Firefox – open Settings, Privacy & Security, scroll down to Permissions, and click on Settings next to Notifications.
• Safari – in the Safari menu, choose Preferences, Websites, Notifications.

Livepdfsearch.com, Install.notify-service.com, Install.stream-all.com, and similar sites should not be allowed to send you notifications.

Finally, scan your computer with antivirus programs, such as Combo Cleaner for macOS, Spyhunter for Windows, and others. Remove malware if these scanners find any.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Restore browser settings

TopHow To remove LivePDFSearch Hijacker 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 LivePDFSearch Hijacker, 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 LivePDFSearch Hijacker 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 LivePDFSearch Hijacker, 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.

How To remove LivePDFSearch Hijacker 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 LivePDFSearch Hijacker 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 LivePDFSearch Hijacker, 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.