sm.de virus - How to remove

Even though sm.de features some traits of a real computer virus, it is more of a PUP (potentially unwanted program). The website itself might be legitimate and safe to use, but we particularly don’t like the way it is distributed and the fact that users find it difficult to get rid of this tool makes it obviously unwanted.

So if you have just noticed that your web browser is set to direct you to www.sm.de website and you have no idea where did it came from, continue reading this article – we will provide you with the most important information about sm.de virus as well as with instructions how to eliminate it fast and efficient.

Sm.de virus is a new version of Startfenster.de hijacker

To begin with, we should mention that sm.de virus is completely targeted to the audience that speaks German. Data from Similarweb.com clearly shows that this website gets the most of the traffic from countries speaking German.

Nonetheless, you can get infected with sm.de even if you don’t know a single word in German and live on the other side of the Earth. That’s because of the way this potentially unwanted tool is being distributed.

It is believed that sm.de infection is not just a new, slightly updated version of Startfenster.de, but the main operator that serves for Startfenster. There are plenty of information online that proves the fact that searches submitted to Startfenster are executed via sm.de website. This website is also targeted to Germany and even though it is a little bit different, both of them shares many similarities. There is almost no doubt that the same people are standing behind of both of these websites. Actually, it’s a company called Aller Media e.K, which is also based in Germany.

The same as Startfenster.de, Sm.de infection is distributed as a bundle to other free software that can be downloaded from the Internet. One of the most notorious example – German version of VLC player. Sm.de is distributed labeled as an update for free VLC player. However, instead of an actual update you will be “rewarded” with malicious files of Sm.de.

Usually browser hijackers are operating as browser add-ons which are used to modify various settings, such as your homepage or new tab page. In this case, Sm.de virus is installed directly on computer and then starts various malicious processes to redirect you to www.sm.de website.

We have already mentioned that it OK to use sm.de website, but that’s just a partly true, because your search experience will be significantly affected. Sm.de employs Google to provide results for the users, however, they often inject sponsored results at top positions that are completely not relevant to your search. Just take a look at the example in the image – we attempted to search for our own website using this search engine and first 4 results were completely not relevant to our keyword, just useless advertisements.

It’s relatively easy to remove typical add-on based browser hijackers, but in this case things are a little bit more complicated. There might be numerous malicious folders and files stored on your computer. Also, sm.de might modify Windows Registry keys. In order to remove this infection manually, you have to have strong knowledge in this particular field, to be able to detect all malicious files and fix registries properly.

Since you are reading this tutorial, we assume that it’s too much to you and you are looking for the easiest way possible to remove sm.de infection. In this case, we suggest to get yourself a tool that will do the job for you. Download and scan your computer with Spyhunter. Either one of those programs should have no problem in detecting and eliminating Sm.de virus in just couple of minutes. Also, you can choose from a wide variety of other anti-malware tools presented on our reviews section.

Automatic Malware removal tools

Remove sm.de manually

How to remove sm.de virus using Windows Control Panel

Many hijackers and adware like sm.de virus 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 sm.de virus . You can click on "Name" or "Installed On" to reorder your programs and make sm.de virus 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 sm.de virus from macOS

Delete sm.de virus from your applications.

1. Open Finder.
2. In the menu bar, click Go.
3. Select Applications from the dropdown.
4. Find the sm.de virus 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 sm.de 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 sm.de 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 sm.de 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 sm.de 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 sm.de 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 sm.de 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 sm.de 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.

How to remove sm.de virus from Safari:Top

Remove malicious extensions

• Click on Safari menu on the top left corner of the screen. Select Preferences.
  
• Select Extensions and uninstall sm.de virus 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 sm.de virus, 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.

Information about SM.de Malware is available in German too.