Search.searchmmd.com browser hijacker - How to remove

Search.searchmmd.com suddenly came up as a new tab page on your web browser? That’s because the web browser you are using was occupied by a malicious extension My Map Direction. It is a browser hijacker that can easily modify your personal settings and take advantage of the situation when your computer is infected.

What possible consequences you can suffer due to this malicious tool operating on your system? Well, first of all, you will definitely experience worse web browsing. Also, it can infiltrate other malware into your system, thus it could lead to more severe consequences. Finally, your personal data can be leaked, that’s probably the worst feature of them all.

If you have found yourself in the position of a victim and this Search.searchmmd.com hijacker is not going away, please continue reading the article. We will teach you how to effectively eliminate malicious extension that causes the damage. In addition to that, we will inform you about the technical features of Search.searchmmd.com and the ways it is distributed.

Search.searchmmd.com – Malicious Extension From Polarity

My Map Direction extension was created by Polarity Technologies LTD, thus it’s kind of an explainer why it is malicious. This company specializes in creating and distributing malware, especially browser hijacker. We have already discovered and examined Polarity extensions like Search.mydailyversexp.com, Search.search-el.com, and search.hmyconverterhub.com, so we know a thing or two about those malicious tools.

Since it is categorized as a browser hijacker, once added to your web browser this extension will automatically hijack it by making some changes. Both new tab page and default search engine will be set to www.searchmmd.com.

This website looks like any other regular search engine. Even though it is described as a powerful tool that is supposed to make your life easier by providing the ability to search for various locations and get directions, plan routes, you won’t be able to experience much of the functionality promised by this tool.

Probably the main feature on the Search.searchmmd.com website is web search and developers of this tool actually want you to use it – that’s where they make money. There is no unique search engine, they only redirect users to the Yahoo search engine. You might think that Yahoo is a reliable search provider that can be trusted, but there is something you should know – developers of Search.searchmmd.com can modify results displayed there and insert whatever they want to.

That being said, using search by Search.searchmmd.com is very dangerous. First of all, you will be exposed to sponsored results  that have nothing to do with your actual search query. Also, they can lead to websites that are dangerous, owned by cybercriminals. In addition to that, there might be various banner advertisements that will disturb your web browsing.

We have also informed you that this malicious extension might leak your personal information and it’s true. All search queries you insert there will be collected, so if some of your private information is revealed there, it can be leaked. Also, this tool will collect information about your browsing habits, search history, most visited sites or even IP address.

This information is very useful for other cybercriminals since they can create malvertising campaigns that are targeted to you more specifically.

Last but not least, Search.searchmmd.com might infiltrate other potentially unwanted programs into your computer. This can be extremely dangerous and this is the reason why you should get rid of this malicious tool as soon as possible.

Search.searchmmd.com Distribution Methods

Search.searchmmd.com can get infiltrated into your system when you download and install some freeware from the Internet. That’s because searchmmd is distributed as a bundle to other free software. When you install some free application, you might be offered to get additional tools that will enhance your web browsing. If you do agree to this offer, malicious tools like this can be infiltrated. Also, it can be uploaded to your system without even warning about that, so in this case, you would only discover the infection when your personal settings are already customized.

We highly recommend to protect your computer with anti-malware tool that features real-time protection, so it could stop various hijackers and adware on the go. You can try the free version of Plumbytes or Malware Fighter.

Removal of Search.searchmmd.com

You already know why this free tool should be removed, but how to do that? Well, the easiest way to get rid of Search.searchmmd.com once and for all is to scan your computer with anti-malware tool like Spyhunter. Such a program is proven to be efficient in fighting against malware, so this browser hijacker will be automatically detected and removed in no time.

Also, after the removal of extension and all malicious files that are associated with it, you will have to manually reset your settings that were hijacked by the virus. It can be a complicated task for a regular user, so we have developed a step-by-step guide which can be found below this article.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Search.searchmmd.com removal instructions

How to remove searchmmd browser hijacker using Windows Control Panel

Many hijackers and adware like My Map Direction 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser hijacker . You can click on "Name" or "Installed On" to reorder your programs and make searchmmd browser hijacker 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser hijacker from macOS

Delete searchmmd browser hijacker from your applications.

1. Open Finder.
2. In the menu bar, click Go.
3. Select Applications from the dropdown.
4. Find the My Map Direction 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser 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 My Map Direction, 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser 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 My Map Direction, 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser 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 My Map Direction, 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser hijacker from Safari:Top

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall My Map Direction 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 Search.searchmmd.com browser hijacker, 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.