MyScrapNook - How to remove

MyScrapNook markets itself as a useful tool to create and share postcards, flyers, collages, resumes, pretty templates.

Unfortunately, the MyScrapNook extension is a PUP — potentially unwanted program, a type of software that pretends to offer a useful function or solution, but only really exists to serve advertisements to its user. It shows you links to the sites that it wants you to visit and replaces your search engine, but really does not provide anything valuable. It’s not a virus, but it’s not beneficial to have it installed.

What is the MyScrapNook toolbar?

The MyScapNook toolbar could be called a browser hijacker. This extension replaces the search engine with MyWay or Ask, if you went ahead and installed their extension. When installing MyScrapNook, “Search Extension by Ask” is offered like it’s the next step, so it’s easy to agree to install it without even thinking about it.

MyScrapNook is actually an extension by Ask. The MyScrapNook toolbar is offered as a bonus product to their other stuff, like

• TotalRecipeSearch
• TelevisionFanatic
• OnlineMapFinder

They have over 100 products.

When you install the MyScrapNook extension to Chrome, it requests a few permissions:

• Read and change your data on a number of websites
  • All amazonaws.com sites
  • All myscrapnook.com sites
  • anx.tb.ask.com
  • hp.myway.com
  • live.tb.ask.com
  • myscrapnook.dl.myway.com
• Replace the page you see when opening a new tab
• Read your browsing history
• Display notifications
• Manage your downloads
• Manage your apps, extensions, and themes

Some of those permissions are rather intrusive, making MyScrapNook look very suspicious. It seems to be able to manipulate your browsing experience, as well as see your browsing history! Ask adamantly defends themselves on their site from accusations about being spyware or adware, but ultimately they are a business that’s trying to make money. And like it’s said, if you’re not paying for the product, you are the product.

 

How could it be harmful?

Extensions and PUPs (potentially unwanted programs) like MyScrapNook can cause problems by collecting your data and later selling it to third parties, for example. Yes, Ask insists that their toolbars do not spy on their users, do not track what sites they visit, and do not store their personal information. And yet, in Ask’s Privacy Policy, they tell us that they automatically collect information which may include

“Information about how you use the Search Application such as the keyword query, search query text, search results clicked, pages viewed and search history”

Also, from the same document,

“We work with various companies (such as advertisers, ad networks and data management platforms) to tailor online ads that you see elsewhere on the internet, including through behavioral advertising designed to target users’ interests and deliver more relevant advertising”

And below they list information that they share with third parties, like

• your demographic data
• your visits to any websites
• what ads you clicked on
• information that they get from other companies collected about you
• and “We may disclose any or all of the collected information to third parties”.

This is why so many are comfortable calling MyScrapNook and its sister extensions and toolbars potentially unwanted programs. Be careful when installing free apps, as some developers and distributors opt to bundle PUPs with their programs. They are optional if you look carefully into installation settings. Not everyone does, though — nor should they have to — and they end up installing adware and malware without their own knowledge or consent, and then having a lot of problematic software to find and remove.

How to remove the MyScrapNook toolbar

You can remove the extensions and notification permissions on your browser, there is a guide below. It is possible that some potentially unwanted programs were installed on your computer via malicious advertisements, so it’s probably a good idea to scan your machine with a professional antivirus program (like Combo-Cleaner or Spyhunter). Antivirus programs recognise not only viruses, but also unwanted programs like adware.

If you installed MyScrapNook for the Internet Explorer, you’ll need to remove it from your computer, either by going to Control Panel, or with an antivirus program.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Remove MyScrapNook Extension

How to remove MyScrapNook using Windows Control Panel

Many hijackers and adware like MyScrapNook install some of their components as regular Windows programs as well as additional software. This part of malware can be uninstalled from the Control Panel. To access it, do the following.

• Start→Control Panel (older Windows) or press Windows Key→Search and enter Control Panel and then press Enter (Windows 8, Windows 10).
• Choose Uninstall Program (if you don't see it, click in the upper right next to "View by" and select Category).
• Go through the list of programs and select entries related to MyScrapNook . You can click on "Name" or "Installed On" to reorder your programs and make MyScrapNook easier to find.
• Click the Uninstall button. If you're asked if you really want to remove the program, click Yes.
• In many cases anti-malware programs are better at detecting related parasites, thus I recommend installing Spyhunter to identify other programs that might be a part of this infection.

How to remove MyScrapNook from macOS

Delete MyScrapNook from your applications.

1. Open Finder.
2. In the menu bar, click Go.
3. Select Applications from the dropdown.
4. Find the MyScrapNook app.
5. Select it and right-click it (or hold the Ctrl and click the left mouse button).
6. In the dropdown, click Move to Bin/Trash. You might be asked to provide your login password.

TopHow To remove MyScrapNook 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 MyScrapNook, 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 MyScrapNook 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 MyScrapNook 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 MyScrapNook, 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 MyScrapNook 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 MyScrapNook, 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 MyScrapNook from Safari:Top

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall MyScrapNook and other suspicious extensions.
  
• If your homepage was changed, click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences and choose General tab. Enter preferable URL to the homepage field.
  

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

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Reset Safari…
  
• Select which options you want to reset (usually all of them come preselected) and click on the Reset button.
  

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