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WowMusix Start hijacker - How to remove

By Ginte

WowMusix Start browser extension for Chrome

WowMusix Start is a browser extension for Chrome, which allows users to enjoy tons of free songs, albums, playlists, videos just in one click, as the developers claim. In reality, there is much more to this plugin that it appears. Although it admits changing the search engine to Yahoo, once you install WowMusix Start, it only briefly mentions that the information on the pages you visit will be altered as well. This means that regular browsing will become more like a burden rather than pleasure/routine.

These past years Google has been actively fighting with malicious extensions which are spreading via Chrome Web Store, however, what they were doing is not enough, because there are still plugins such as WowMusix Start, that are available for users to freely download. Technically and legally this musical extension is clear about all the negative things it does to its victims’ computers, yet since people rarely read EULA, there is no surprise that there are a lot of upset users, who want WowMusix Start removed when they notice what it does. It doesn’t matter if you happen to install WowMusix Start yourself, or for some reason, it appeared in your PC/Mac, in this article we’ll explain how to delete it once and for all.

What’s the purpose of WowMusix Start hijacker

The WowMusix Start browser extension is a malicious browser plugin that aims to hijack the search engine and make specific alterations, which would benefit the developers and not the user. Briefly speaking, this is done to give the extra authorization to hackers to fully take over the control of the content the victim sees and use this chance to advertise, redirect and use other techniques of online marketing to earn easy money. After luring in people with empty promises, WowMusix Start hijacker immediately runs malicious scripts and changes the main homepage, new tab and search engine to the ones that bring some sort of advantage.

Our researchers noticed that WowMusix Start extension changes the homepage into a plain looking page, which seems to copy other famous sites like Google, Yahoo, Bing and etc. Besides the clock and search bar, there are a few buttons that give immediate access to social media like Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Amazon and etc. But it is risky to connect to your accounts through these buttons because once the homepage and search engine are altered, your data is actively tracked by the crooks and they possibly can get your login information and hack the accounts.

WowMusix Start hijacked browser yahoo search

What is important to mention too, is that once WowMusix Start hijacker succeeds with installation, Yahoo search (which most likely are generously sharing profit for the increased traffic) will become the main search engine. While it isn’t a big problem, wait until you’ll begin browsing. Most of the results to your queries will be filled with ads, Affiliate links, sponsored content and etc. In order to find relevant information to your question, it will take a while, because you’ll have to sieve through all the unnecessary promotions from third-parties. They bring nice revenue for the creators of WowMusix Start extension but put users at risk because of the unmonitored content (which can be viruses, PUPs and etc.) they are allowed to post.

As for the promised free music, WowMusix Start does indeed provide the users a service, unfortunately, it’s nothing spectacular or great as you might have expected. Whenever you go to that page with all the albums and select to play any of them, the songs come from Youtube, simply playing somebody’s playlist. This is how the developers solved the problem of having video clips, music and albums in one click. While we cannot say that theWowMusix Start hijacker is not doing what it promised, you must ask yourself if it’s worth to get an application like this, which is interfering with your online surfing when you can open Youtube and have the same results with no bad consequences.

We advise removing WowMusix Start hijacker as soon as possible not only because of the inconvenience but also because it has the potential to cause harm to your system, moreover, track some of your data. There are plenty of better options for music lovers than WowMusix Start as well, if you don’t believe us, take a minute to read The official Privacy Policy.

How does WowMusix Start plugin infect browsers

First of all, in order to hijack the browser, WowMusix Start virus has to install into Chrome as a plugin and there are couple ways to do so. One of such methods is to distribute as a legitimate extension and promise good things for free so that the users would be willing to download the plugin voluntarily. WowMusix Start has its own well designed and professional-looking website, as well as a spot in the Chrome’s Web Store. People looking for various music player options stumble upon these pages and decide to try the application, especially when the offer sounds so good. If Chrome’s store data is correct, then there are close to 200,000 downloads of WowMusix Start, which is impressive for such a sneaky program. (Why malicious browser extensions is such a problem)

WowMusix Start remove Chrome extension

Another technique which disseminates WowMusix Start plugin is Bundling. This is most likely the one that caused your Chrome to get infected. In these cases, it’s common for WowMusix Start hijacker and other plugins, such as Sports ScoreEasyConvertSearch.hweathernation.co, to appear suddenly and surprise victims by making various changes in the browser. They can come packed in other program Setup Wizards that come from untrustworthy sources (Freeware spreading vendors, torrents, fake updates and etc.) and hide as additional recommended programs, which are set to install by the default together with the main software. In some installers, you can opt-out by proceeding the set up in Custom mode and deselecting the added unwanted programs, but typically, there is no chance to make any changes.

How to remove WowMusix Start hijacker fast

Fortunately, WowMusix Start browser hijacker is a pretty easy-to-solve computer virus. Typically it only affects the browser and makes minimal changes to it, on the other hand, it still not recommended to keep it in your system, because in the long term the consequences can result in much worse outcome than just a modified search engine and Aggressive ads. Since this threat is in a form of a browser plugin, the removal is so simple that can be done by everyone and in two different ways – automatic and manual.

Both elimination techniques are great, however, we advise you to combine both of them and firstly remove the extension yourself if you can and then scan the PC/Mac with malware removal products to make sure it is free from viruses. Of course, if you don’t have time, you can just stick to security software and see if it catches the WowMusix Start plugin from the beginning. Our favorite anti-malware programs, which we have been working with for years are Spyhunter and Malwarebytes. They are well-known for their sophisticated and fast performance, reputable removal skills and large virus databases. Of course, if you want to see what else is there in the market to help you with WowMusix Start hijacker, we have the whole page of reviewed antivirus programs.

Automatic Malware removal tools

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How to uninstall WowMusix Start extension from Chrome

Uninstalling WowMusix Start extension from Chrome is rather easy. Simply follow the manual removal instructions our team made and the hijacker should be gone pretty easily. Mind you, you might have to set your previous settings, homepage and search engine back to the ones you had before. Depending on the severity of the infection and vulnerability of your system, you may want to run a preventative system scan with a special anti-spyware tool to make sure if there are no other infections left to clear before using the computer fully again. Because nowadays we handle a lot of Sensitive data online and through our browsers, such as bank logins, filing taxes, hospital, other registrations and etc. it is imperative to have a trustworthy and clean computer.

TopHow To remove WowMusix Start hijacker from Google Chrome:

  • Click on the 3 horizontal lines icon on a browser toolbar and Select More Tools→Extensions
    Extensions
  • Select all malicious extensions and delete them.
    Remove extensions
  • Click on the 3 horizontal lines icon on a browser toolbar and Select Settings
    Open settings
  • Select Manage Search engines
    Manage search engines
  • Remove unnecessary search engines from the list
    Delete search engines
  • 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.
    Set pages
  • Delete malicious search websites at a new Startup pages window by clicking “X” next to them.
    Delete start pages

(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings

If you are still experiencing any issues related to WowMusix Start 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.
    Resset settings
  • Click on the Reset button on the confirmation box.
    Reset approve

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

TopHow to remove WowMusix Start hijacker from Google Chrome on Mac:

  • Open Chrome browser.
  • Enter in the url field “chrome://extensions” address and hit Enter.
  • Find WowMusix Start hijacker on the extensions list and click on the recycle bin icon next to it. Open extensions
  • Click on 'Chrome' button at the top left corner. Select 'Preferences' on a drop-down menu box.Open preferences
  • Find 'Search' options on Settings tab. If your search engine is changed, click 'Manage Search Engines' and set your preferred search engine. Set search engine preferences
  • On the same page find 'Show home button' checkbox and change your homepage. Show home button
(Optional) Reset your browser’s settings If you are still experiencing any issues related to WowMusix Start hijacker, reset the settings of your browser to its default settings.
  • On the 'Preferences' menu window, scroll down to the bottom and find 'Reset settings' button. Click it. Reset settings
  • Confirm your selection and click 'Reset' on the following window. Reset settings approve
If you cannot reset your browser settings and the problem persists, scan your system with an anti-malware program.

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